Pagan Rituals Research Articles

Selling Authenticity in the Bamum Kingdom in 1929–1930

In February 1930, Eugene Pittard, the director of the ethnological museum in Geneva, sought to expand his museum’s collections in an unusual manner. Instead of sponsoring an expedition to Africa or acquiring objects from former missionaries, instead of buying from established dealers in ethnographic specimens or the newer galleries that specialized in l’art negre, Pittard wrote to an African man in Africa, a Bamum man named Mose Yeyap (Pittard 1930) (Fig. 1).1 Yeyap was the head of the relatively new artisanat in Foumban, a school and artists’ cooperative founded in 1927, and he was known as a key figure for collectors seeking to acquire works of art from the Bamum kingdom. Pittard’s letter explained that he “would like to assemble ... as true a picture as possible of the population of which you are a part, that is to say of the material life of this population. I am sending you by the same post [a list of] the kinds of things that would be the most interesting to have” (Pittard 1930). Pittard explained pointedly, “I insist on one point: Our intent is to have the oldest objects; those which have not been subjected to European influence.” He then listed for Yeyap the kinds of objects he had in mind: “sculpted wood masks, statues, sculpted horns, etc. ... sculpted drums with carved animals or other designs. Miss Debarge [a physician known both to Pittard and Yeyap] showed me drawings on paper that you made of sculptures. Is it possible to have these sculptures themselves?” (Pittard 1930). Pittard’s letter, of course, epitomizes how European arrogance and fantasy informed the collection of African art in the first decades of the twentieth century. Pittard condescendingly and absurdly schooled Yeyap about Yeyap’s own culture and, by privileging his desire for “the oldest objects,” those supposedly untouched by “European influence,” Pittard revealed his adherence to the chimerical “ideal” of African cultures as isolated in time and space. In a fascinating twist, however, we also have Yeyap’s response to Pittard. Yeyap answered back:

Women Drummers: A History from Rock and Jazz to Blues and Country by Angela Smith (review)

Women Drummers: A History from Rock and Jazz to Blues and Country. By Angela Smith. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2014. [xviii, 271 p. ISBN 9780810888340 (hardcover), $40; ISBN 9780810888357 (e-book), $39.99.] Illustrations, bibliographic references, index. In the late 1990s, Lilith Fair was a traveling festival celebrating women and featuring solely female solo artists and bands fronted by women. At that time there were highly-accomplished who declined to participate simply because they did not want to be on a bill just for being female. Such artists had no desire to be known as girl musicians or pretty good for a girl. They wanted to be known simply as musicians, judged on the merits of their work. It is just this kind of woman-rebel-pioneer whose story is told in Women Drummers. The introduction presents the dilemma: the scarcity of women drummers and the biases against them in the music business and the culture. This sets the stage for the purpose of the book: to recognize the women who were, and are, pioneers in a field that is still primarily male. As jazz drummer Viola Smith said (in Dozen Magazine) in 1942, 'Hep girls' could sit in any jam session and hold their own (p. xviii). The sheer variety of drummers covered deserves special note. The reader will learn about women drummers in jazz whose names they may not know, but whose work was admired by the likes of Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, and Louie Bellson. Readers will likely learn things they didn't know about mainstream rock drummers such as Karen Carpenter, Sheila E, and Debbi Peterson (the Bangles). One will also discover unsung heroes of indie rock in accomplished, critically acclaimed drummers ranging from Maureen Moe Tucker (the Velvet Underground) to Janet Weiss (Sleater-Kinney, Quasi, Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks) to Carla Azar (Autolux, Jack White) and beyond. Before the roughly decade-by-decade coverage begins, the author takes the reader through a brief overview of the history of women as drummers, reminding us that female drummers were common in some cultures in both ancient and more recent history. Her examples of women as primary percussionists range from biblical references in the Old Testament to the Sumerians, and from the Tang and Sung dynasties to pagan rituals. Among other sources, she cites the book When the Were Women by Layne Redmond (New York: Three Rivers Press, 1997). In addition to the stories of the women drummers covered in each chapter, the author gives the reader a taste of the cultural, political, and social battles, shifts, and upheavals in which these women struggled. The focus of the book is women who play the drum kit in popular music idioms, but the chapter Drummers of a Different Beat treats women percussionists who do less easy-to-categorize work, most notably Dame Evelyn Glennie and Ikue Mori. The chronological approach suits her purpose well, as the early decades of the twentieth century are, of course, characterized by more homogeneous styles of music. In the latter part of the century, there were more women playing more diverse styles. Smith accommodates this with multiple chapters in the decades after the 1970s and in late chapters specifically devoted to country, blues, and jazz. Smith's chapter on the 1970s is exemplary for her weaving of culture, music, and the stories of the drummers together. It includes Alice de Buhr (Fanny), Sandy West (The Runaways), and Palmolive (The Slits). Rock music enthusiasts know Joan Jett, and even that her first band was called The Runaways. The rock connoisseur will learn about Sandy West, the drummer who started the Runaways with Jett. Smith tells their story against the backdrop of the tumult of Watergate, Vietnam, women's liberation, drugs, and free love, as women navigated new territories in the workplace, politics, and in family life. The author reminds us that misogyny was all too real. Creem Magazine said, These bitches suck . …

Religious and secular models of power achieved through funeral ritual: Ancient paradigms

This paper researches why and in which way Athenian polis, and since Byzantine era also the Church, made efforts to take over the control over funeral rite. How, why and under which circumstances pagan ritual moved from private to public sphere? How were the roles in the ritual distributed? In which way the elements of pagan rite were integrated in Christian funeral and what was the power-game between Pagans and Christians? Which social potential made funeral so important that the state and the Church were fighting for gaining power over it?

The Christian Marathoner: Athletic References in Paul’s Epistles

When the Apostle Paul came to Corinth, most likely in the year 50 AD, Corinth had regained its cosmopolitan importance after its destruction by the Romans in 146 BC. Once again it was a prominent and flourishing commerce city. Its bustling population developed the city and its port to be a vital connecting link between Italy and the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. After a century of virtual abandonment, Corinth’s Isthmian Games were once again celebrated in the same festive manner as they had been in the past. Since Paul, on his first visit remained in Corinth for eighteen months, as indicated in the book of Acts of the Apostles, he must have been present at the Isthmian Games held in the spring of 51 AD. This experience, as well as those of his own youthful Hellenic and Judaic educational upbringing, gave Paul the opportunity to re-acquaint himself with pagan rituals and use athletic images to spread his evangelical message. Although there is no documented evidence that Paul was an athlete, this qualitative analysis of Alexandrine Greek text, which Paul used to write his epistles, as well as archaeological evidence, points out Paul’s usage of many athletic/sport related references (words) in spreading his evangelical message. In the arena of Christian spiritual contests, Paul was an exceptional Isthmian “athlete”.

The Religious Cults of the Albanian Faith during the Early 20th Century

During the early twentieth century, Albania was visited by various British and American people who were eager to know about the curious features of this little country’s particular life. They had heard of it in their homeland and chose to trace a reality that was much different from the one they were used to. The materials they wrote and published, constitute a reliable source of information, whose analysis from the modern perception draws a picture of the life almost a century ago. This paper aims to describe the particular context of the relation that Albanian people had created with God and the way the religious life was shaped through the traditional rituals of the country. A few of the arguments that will be analyzed are: the way the religious faith was integrated in the daily activities, the religious tolerance in the state policies and the way it was reflected in the life context, religious attitudes due to the historical development of the past centuries, the influence of the new entries of the ‘30s, the restricted intercourse of the northern Albanians due to their geographical isolation and the pagan rituals and symbols of the traditional ceremonies. The Albanian way of worshiping seems to have been shaped by life pragmatism, social equilibrium and personal honesty. Nothing can describe it better than the people who lived with it for some time and were able to define it from a different mental perception. The description may supply modern insight of the particular attitude that this country reflected in early in the past century.

The Academy, the Otherworld and Between

The paper discusses twenty-five years of research, beginning with feminist witches in New Zealand, moving to the small but diverse Pagan community of Malta, then to European Pagan communities more broadly, and recently to larger themes pertinent to Paganisms globally, such as nationalism, trans-nationalism, cosmopolitanism, and local/global influences and processes. My career and this paper are preoccupied with researcher and Pagan identities and positioning, and with the socio-cultural contexts in which they are crafted, including the academic one. An anthropologist is always and inevitably, to some degree, a liminal being, whose position as a perpetual ‘in-betweener’ has long been problematized within the discipline. For those who research witches and Pagans, this liminality is amplified because our research participants, too, are liminal in the societies they inhabit, and because seeking liminality – or going ‘between the worlds’ – is fundamental to Pagan rituals and everyday life. In this narrative I show that while an anthropologist’s positioning is inherently problematic, liminality can be comfortable and explicable by employing the metaphor of the hag who, though liminal, can fully occupy multiple worlds.

Slavic Journeys to the Otherworld. Remarks on the Eschatology of Early Medieval Pomeranians<br>Słowiańskie wędrówki w zaświaty. Kilka uwag na temat eschatologii wczesnośredniowiecznych Pomorzan</br>

Many obstacles appear in attempts at explore and reconstruct the pagan rituals and beliefs of early medieval Pomeranians. This is not only due to the lack of written accounts referring to such practices, but also because of the various problems with unravelling the meaning and content of the archaeological evidence. Today, it is often difficult to determine how certain places or objects were perceived by past societies and with what symbolism they had been imbued. The burial finds are equally problematic since, while excavating cemeteries, we discover only the final result of the complex funerary process, i.e. the grave. Therefore, a question arises as to whether the material remains found at cemeteries could allow for revealing such abstract and subtle matters as eschatological beliefs. In an attempt to reconstruct the Slavic vision of the Otherworld, this paper will examine in detail the notions of the soul (spirit) and the meaning of grave-goods.

THE SOURCE OF RUSSIAN THEATER IN FOLK CULTURE

The folk culture, which is the foundation of contemporary values, provides to societies distinctive creativity duration by effecting artistic expression forms. On the other hand, the theater, as both a visual and literary genre, has become a cultural system by presenting ways for understanding and transmission of the events in versatile ways. Within this context, it can be said that the folk culture has had an encouraging effect on the turning theatrical art into a generic form and on the movement of the theater art with different adaptations. In Russia, primitive theatrical signs with regards to folk culture are seen in the period before the organisation of the first governmental theater. In that period especially the feast days, plays, skomorokhi (wandering minstrel-clowns) and puppet theater made a significant contribution to the theater art and moved it to the professional stage. In this article, it is aimed to discuss the theatrical importance of the factors belonging to the folk culture and the developments, composing the basics of the Russian theater, through the ceremonies, folk dances, weddings, feast days, pagan rituals and the travel notes.

Evolution of the legal regulation of marriage and family relations in Ukrainian lands during X – XIX centuries

Statement of problem. In Ukraine nowadays every year the family institution loses its meaning. There is a growing trend towards so-called frequent divorce, and young people do not want to marry. You should also remember the wedding, ceremony, which is primarily a spiritual meaning, not just a contract. As a form of marriage in general it has lost its value and almost never used. We can not ignore and gay marriage, the debate over which unabated. There are many points of view, various studies and surveys on this. In many countries, such marriages are allowed, but multiple opponents argue that it is contrary to the very definition of family and marriage. So today there is a need to explore the genesis concepts of marriage and family. Recent research and publication analysis. The question of marriage and family relations was always interested researchers because the family and the family is the foundation of every human life. Recent research and public study on matrimonial customary law pre-Christian times in his writings pay attention Hrushevsky, Ivan Krypiakevych, I. Belyaev, M. ascend-Budanov, V. Serhiyevych, Shulgin, S. Yushkov, N. Pushkarev, N. Belyaev. The question of civil-legal regulation of property relations in Kievan Rus according to the norms of n Pravda was the subject of study of various scientists. These include, in particular, B. Grekov , P.Muzychenko, V. Rubanyka, W. Kulczycki, P. Zakharchenko, V. Serhiyevycha and others. In the nineteenth century the question of family relations, family and inheritance redistribution members of one family studied Pahman S., M. Kachanov, Barykov A., Mukhin, Alexander Leontiev. Paper objective. The article is a comprehensive analysis of the formation of marriage and family relations arising from the fact of belonging to a marriage and family in the Ukrainian lands in their development during X – XIX centuries. Paper main body. Analyzed the issue of marriage and family relations in the process of formation and development in Ukraine. History of the Ukrainian family law reaches ancient times, even before the formation of Kievan Rus as a state, let alone the adoption of Christianity. In ancient times in our history the Ukrainian lands major factor regulating social relations advocated custom. Personal property and non-property rights of spouses dependent on the shape and conditions of marriage. Matrimonial law Kievan Rus was a kind and unique because formed based on Byzantine law, pagan rituals, various folk customs and princely legislation. To simplify and facilitate the marriage in 1897 was issued a collection of religious and civil laws on divorce and judicial proceedings in matrimonial matters, where it was said that people of Orthodox religion can marry among themselves and with foreigners Orthodox and all other Christian denominations not asking for special permission from the authorities, but with all the marriage requirements. Conclusions of research. Examining the different forms of marriage in the Pagan era, one could argue that the echoes of ancient customs can be seen today in the marriage rites. The adoption of Christianity created favorable conditions for the rapid development of social, economic, political and spiritual relations, preparing the ground for organizing the legal system, both in general and in the field of marriage and family relations. Christianity, including Orthodox Church, had a great influence on the formation of new ethical norms of life which, to some extent found their reflection in the new legal system. Further evolution took place right in the direction of humanization. Thus, the Christian church has become a stabilizing factor in the socio-political system and legal development as Kievan Rus and modern Ukraine. The provisions of customary law XVII-XVIII reflected in the laws of the Russian Empire concerning marriage, conditions for its conclusion and termination, family rights and responsibilities and so on. These laws, some provisions of which began to operate from late XVII-XVIII century. In the nineteenth century. already fully regulate marriage and family relationships population, including Ukraine as part of the Russian Empire, and acted to the October revolution in 1917 however they were not straightforward and often contradicted each other. On the one hand provide extensive freedom and independence of women, on the other - completely denied their rights. Full union of church and state, which was one of the important principles of society at the time, was at the heart of marriage laws: the laws given not only features the marriage of some segments of the population, but were certain provisions of the laws concerning marriage of people of different Christian denominations and marriage do not Christians. The state determined the only legitimate church marriage, the main proof of marriage was a record in the parish (metric) book. As for the rights and responsibilities of spouses, they are completely controlled by the church, the state and meet the requirements of the then social, though not entirely satisfy the desire of family members.

Reassembling religious symbols: the Pagan God Baphomet

Religious symbols are primarily significant because they draw people into relationships. Drawing on actor-network theory the paper demonstrates that symbols are hybrids of beliefs, cognitive interpretations, ritual performances and relational networks. The significance of symbols is located in this middle ground, as they mediate between thought and action, as well as between interpretative meaning and relational practice. Aesthetic experiences and ritual performance are interwoven with cognitive meaning and representation to generate the impact of religious symbols. This understanding of symbols is illustrated through an ethnographic account of a Pagan ritual involving the deity Baphomet. One of the participants describes this ritual succinctly: ‘Baphomet is a recreation of the Witches’ sabbat, an invocation of archetypal Witchcraft. It's R-rated, it contains adult themes, nudity and sex references.’ Through ritual experiences, religious symbols change the way people feel about themselves, the world and the people around them.

UM SABÁ NOS TRÓPICOS: INQUISIÇÃO, MEMÓRIA E PRODUÇÃO DE SENTIDO

In this article we analyze three denunciations made by the Holy Office during its final visitation to colonial Brazil (1773-1779), against the indian Sabina, that allows us to understand some aspects of the process of identifying a multicultural people, the result of the encounter of intercontinental recollection, of processes of transfer and resistance. We analyze how fragments of Catholic and Pagan rituals were tied to a religion born out of resistance, generated by censorship which has grown in our memory, permitting differing meanings, resulting in the possibility to fluctuate between virtuous work and work of the devil, eventually stabilizing as virtuousness through the strength of a symbolic memory.

Migration as a Factor of Cultural and Sub-cultural Diversity- Case of Korca City

: Sociological studies pay special attention to the mechanisms of cultural change and development, as well as the main factors that determine such dynamics. Zyhdi Dervishi (2011) considers cultural diffusion as one of the most influential factors of cultural development. Referring to the sociological literature consulted for this study, it is founded that Albanian culture is described as a mosaic of diverse subcultures, which differ greatly from one another. This sub-cultural diversity is evidenced in all components of cultural system; the docks, customs, manner of speaking, clothing, lifestyle, religious and pagan rituals and ceremonials, art, music, poetry, norms, values, symbols, elements of material culture etc. There are a number of factors that have contributed significantly in shaping the features of Albanian culture and its sub-cultural diversity. One of these factors is migration. It is noticed that migratory movements affect social and cultural development; major changes occur in family relationships, lifestyle, tendency for new cultural values acquisition, etc. This is more evident in rural- urban migration, as well as in international migration phenomenon. New economic resources, new working devices, system of social relationship in host society comprise an important source in transforming people's lives. Over the past twenty years Albanian society has experienced a number of economic, social and cultural changes, caused especially by increasing flows of internal and international migrants. Significant cultural changes are evidenced in social and cultural environment of Korça city, which is characterized by the phenomenon of massive displacement of population from rural areas to the city, as well as migration phenomenon in Greece. Taking into consideration the complexity of migration phenomenon and the consequences it brings in cultural plan, we intend to highlight and examine elements of sub-cultural diversity in Korça city, caused by internal and international migration. This paper draws on a research in Korça city, located in southeast of Albania, 35 km to the Greek border, which reflects a cultural environment where are intertwined trends of the cultural change, caused by migration from rural areas within the city and emigration process to neighboring Greece. In- depth interviews and observation will be used for data collection. Combined analysis of qualitative and quantitative methods will be used for data processing. This enables making comparisons and identifying problems. This paper aims to identify and analyze the impact of migration in sub-cultural diversity and aspects of the coexistence between rural subculture, urban subculture and the one of people having migration experience to Greece.

Between Two Realities

Between Two Realities Lyndee Yamshon (bio) Devangelical. Erika Rae. Emergency Press. http://emergencypress.org. 268 pages; paper, $15.95. Devangelical is an ambivalent coming-of-age tale of a teenage girl wrestling with the pressures of a rigid evangelical childhood and her philosophical, questioning nature. Set in the 1980s, the text is rich with nostalgic lingo of the memoirist’s youthful persona and her humorous but at times excruciating pulls between two realities: evangelical dogma and the “outside” colorful world that often seems more interesting. In the midst of pursuing the religious authenticity spurred on by her church youth leader, Erika Rae finds herself stepping outside her experiences and asking, what is the purpose of all this, or, what was our mission here again…which ultimately adds a smart, metanarrative layer to the text that would otherwise simply read as a personal journey away from a claustrophobic, repressed youth. Rae’s strength is her exuberant, colorful scene-building skills. Rich with characterization, detailed setting, and deadpan dialogue, the reader is immediately drawn into a world of religious extremities without judgment. The author straddles the line between self-mockery and simple, seemingly obvious inquiries, strategies allowing the reader to be fully engaged and entertained with a religious fervor that is foreign to the layperson and made delightfully accessible by the author. One scene involves Rae’s youth group attending a new age festival with the intention of cleansing young heathen souls and spreading the word of Jesus. The youth leader, affectionately referred to as King Richard, a longtime mentor and spiritual guide for the young Rae, suggests the best kind of “spiritual warfare” entails dueling with the devil in his environment by engaging in an onslaught of religious debate, an integral righteous fight for a good evangelical. This kind of warfare is synonymous with many religious fervent groups, involving the notion that the pious must get their hands dirty and risk their own impurity in order to save wayward souls. Rae’s nuanced subtext suggests that evangelicals yearning to help others are actually living vicariously through non-believers by conducting these so-called missions. Everyone is under scrutiny, including the pious, Rae herself, and atheists, so that the reader is instantly immersed in a thoughtful meditation about the pitfalls of belief as well as its potential benefits. Rae captures the rhythmic humor of her mentor Richard’s army-speak as the evangelical troops arrive at a new age festival for conquering: Well soldiers, this is it…. This is what we’ve been training for. Now I don’t want to see anyone do anything stupid or blow our cover in there. No casualties. We’re basically gonna spend one hour in there and then meet back at the front doors at…” he glanced at his camo Swatch, “… eleven hundred hours. Any questions?” Rae as teenaged spiritual warrior observes the surrounding “booths offering the Devil’s services: reflexology, fortune telling…massage…,” and wonders in her usual way, “Why are we here again?”, a pleading question that continues throughout the memoir. In this scenario, no one hears her because “the place was so full of noise, laughter—Steve Nick’s cackles—that they couldn’t hear me.” In truth, the fifteen year old often doesn’t feel heard by either her parents or the evangelical community. The external pressure of the constant religious vigor combined with her own inner doubts creates an undercurrent of anxiety as she pushes along through several misadventures. The reader is taken on a carnival ride into the uncanny chaos of an imposing religious world, and the writer has the ability to suddenly question what’s happening mid-scene without losing the book’s pacing or momentum. The group quickly retreats from the den of sin when Christine, a once staunch evangelical, is found sneaking a picture of her aura in a photo booth and then “wigs out” by quoting “the entire book of Deuteronomy.” Rae’s ironic response to Christine’s being taken in by pagan ritual is not disgust but curiosity, a pattern of inquiry persisting throughout the memoir. “‘What are you talking about?’ I asked incredulously. I had never heard of an aura before—let alone...

One God. Pagan Monotheism in the Roman Empire , and: Monotheism between Pagans and Christians in Late Antiquity (review)

One God. the Roman Empire. Edited by Stephen Mitchell and Peter Van Nuffelen. (New York: Cambridge University Press. 2010. Pp. 239- $99-00. ISBN 978-0-521-19416-7.) between Pagans and Christians Late Antiquity. Edited by Stephen Mitchell and Peter Van Nuffelen. [Interdisciplinary Studies Ancient Culture and Religion, 12.] (Leuven: Peeters. 2010. Pp. vi, 225. euro48,00 paperback. ISBN 978-9-042-92242-6.) These two collections of essays are the product of conference entitled Pagan the Roman Empire (1-4 c. AD) that was held at Exeter University July 2006 and represented highlight of triennial research program on the intellectual background to mono theism. The program was conceived as response to the volume Late edited by Michael Frede and the reviewer. The two books differ conception and format. One God an elegantly produced hardcover, containing six basically conceptual essays by recognized authorities the field of religious studies, as well as the contributions of the two editors. on the other hand, paperback volume, apparently less carefully edited, which takes the form more of series of case studies, as the editors themselves note (p. 8). While accepting pagan as heuristic tool, both books give emphasis to the social and political context of religious praxis and the preeminence of cult and over ideology, although the editors point to chronological division between the two. Regarding the Constantinian revolution as watershed, they assign to One God papers dealing with the era before the recognition of Christianity as religio licita and to those relating to the period 350-450. It may also be noted that One God concentrates on the Greek East, whereas draws to an equal extent on Latin sources. The papers One God reflect the fundamental distinctions among (a) soft (inclusive) and hard (exclusive) Judeo-Christian monotheism, (b) numerical and qualitative oneness, and (c) monotheistic thought and polytheistic cult. In well-structured methodological article, Pagan as Religious Phenomenon (pp. 16-33), Peter Van Nuffelen discusses the history and usefulness of such coinages as henotheism, monotheism, and monolatry, together with the neologism megatheism, the context of the study of Greco-Roman religion. All these terms, he argues, point to the changed way of conceiving and worshiping the godhead the Roman Empire as from the first century, change brought about by the interaction between various religious trends under the growing influence of philosophical discourse. Change equally the central issue the analysis of Roman from the first to the fourth century by John North, Pagan Ritual and Monotheism (pp. 34-52), although his emphasis on social and sociological factors (listed on pp. 42 and 51); not only does North minimize the role of philosophy the process of mutation, but he dismisses altogether the idea that the tendency toward monotheism a necessary condition for the religious transformations we are seeking to analyse (p. 51). Frede (The Case for Greek and Graeco-Roman Antiquity, pp. 53-81) and Stephen Mitchell (Further Thoughts on the Cult of Theos Hypsistos, pp. 167-208) remain faithful to the positions adopted their respective essays Monotheism. Emphasizing continuity and intellectuality, Frede brings evidence from Antisthenes, Chrysippus, and Galen to prove that philosophy at the heart of ancient religion, which is not just matter of cult and ritual (p. 81). By adducing new epigraphic evidence, Mitchell restates his thesis that the cult of Theos Hypsistos was in essence and spirit, if not the narrowest definition, form of monotheistic religion (p. 198). With reference to St. Augustine's reception of the Platonic theology, Alfons Furst (Monotheism between Cult and Politics: The Themes of the Ancient Debate between and Christian Monotheism, pp. …

Book Reviews: Two New Books on Pagan Ritual

Back in the dark ages when many of us started Wicca, we were starved for knowledge and, being of the intellectual bent, headed to our nearest libraries and book stores looking for revealing tomes. What we found were abstruse esoterica only indirectly relayed to our doings, or decidedly spare recipe books of 'spells' and a few rituals. There were few sources that provided satisfactory 'whole cloth' rituals, nor were there books that explored the implications and obligations of doing magic.

Libation in Baltic Religious Practices

It is mentioned in 15th to 18th-century written sources that in Lithuania, Prussia and Latvia pagan rituals, during which a certain amount of drink would be poured out for the gods and the dead, were practised. Lithuanian and Latvian ethnographic material from the 19th and 20th centuries supports the continuity of this tradition at community and family feasts. In sources on Baltic religion it is usually emphasised that the drink would be poured out on to the ground. This can be inter­preted as a triple offering: to the goddess of the Earth, to the domestic deities, and to the souls of the dead. However, the Balts not only practised pouring drink on the ground, but other libation practices too. In terms of the place on to which the drink would be poured, the following practices can be singled out: pouring on the ground, into fire, into water, and into the air (sprinkling the drink upwards). Pouring on to stones and trees, which is related to elements of sacred places, also deserves special attention. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/ 10.15181/ab.v15i1.2 6

The importance of Justinian's codification work in the field of marital relations

This paper tries to describe theoretically some of the numerous questions regarding the marriage in Justinian's time (525-565). By finishing the work of his predecessors (Gregorian, Hermogenian, Theodosius), Justinian codified the whole of Roman law. Of course, when we speak about Justinian, we also have in mind Tribonian and other members of his team. He introduced many innovations in family, i.e. marital relations: cognate kinship (blood kinship) replaced agnate kinship; the head of a family had no more 'right of life or death' (ius vitae ac necis) over the family members; marriage was reformed and a lot of restrictions were abolished as well as many pagan rituals involved in the act of getting married, and the divorce was no more 'duty but right'. Under the influence of Christianity that was spread in the first century among slaves and the poor and the moral purity that had been preached by Christianity - Justinian continued the policy of his predecessors (August, Constantine, Theodosius) towards strengthening marriage and family. Even in the period of spreading Christianity across the Roman Empire, ancient Roman religious rituals were becoming less common due to decreased importance of religion and ethics. Roman legislation in that period did not insist on formalities in the process of getting married; it insisted on a mutual agreement of a bride and bridegroom and after that the marriage was contracted as a 'legal union' - consensus facit nuptias - as the Romans said. In the Justinian time, although the marriage was under a great influence of Christianity, it required no church blessing for a contracted marriage. That condition will be introduced by Leo the Wise in the 9th century for the Eastern Roman Empire. According to Justinian, a marriage is 'the relationship of a husband and wife that contains permanent life community'. The procedure and the attached activities that accompany the act of getting married (engagement, dowry, premarital gift, prenuptial contract or instrimentum dotale, for the persons of higher classes) were contained in the provisions of Institution, Digest, Codex and Novellae and these have been referred to in the discussion about the topic in questions. Historical, comparative, legal and dogmatic methods have been used for the purpose of producing this paper. CONCLUSION: An analysis of provisions from the mentioned parts of Justinian's codification has lead us to a conclusion that they were the foundations for matrimonial legislation (with respect to both concluding marriage and divorce) in most states of the former Byzantine empire. Even today, only a secular marriage concluded before relevant state authorities is considered to be valid. Those wishing to be married in church are free to do so in the presence of the clergyman in charge, but this act has no legal effect.

Opis poganskega obreda v spodmolu Triglavca<br>Description of the Pagan Ritual in the Triglavca Rock Shelter near Divača Village</br>

The paper describes a Slav pagan ritual of fertility, which took place in the rock shelter of Triglavca near Divaca (Slovenia). It was being performed by individual families from the village of Prelože pri Lokvi until the end of the 1830s. The essential element of the ceremony was the ritual entreaty of either the mythological being deva or the divinity Deva to protect the crop on the fields in the forthcoming year from the evil female demon of mora.

The Preservation of National Childbirth Traditions in the Russian Homebirth Community

In Russia labor and birth were transferred from home to hospital shortly after the 1917 Revolution. A set of measures intended to promote state hospitals and reduce the authority of traditional birth attendants and healers was introduced. As a result, birth in hospitals became the norm, and the tradition of home midwifery was interrupted.(2) As the setting of birth changed, the ritual practices and physical treatments of homebirth were forgotten. Though hospital maternity practices preserved the essential archetypal structure of birth as a rite of passage [Belousova 2001], the traditional actions associated with birth disappeared. The practical experience of traditional midwifery was neglected and it was not integrated into the new tradition. Another reason for these events was general change in the perception of the laws ruling the world, of human nature and, as a consequence, the organization of the human body. The Soviet authorities heavily promoted a positivist and materialist manner of thinking. The new mentality was secular, with atheism promoted by the Communists in mass media, school and workplace. The destruction of churches and severe repression of the clergy were part of the war against any perceived threat to materialist thinking. In fact, Russian popular faith presented a complex phenomenon, a mix of Russian Orthodox and pagan elements. People often considered pagan rituals and beliefs as Christian and experienced difficulty in differentiating one from the other. State ideology decried pagan customs as superstition and those who practiced them were persecuted. The private life of Soviet citizens was generally scorned and ignored. The limits of the family were far from hermetic; the Communist Party had the right to regulate the life of the family, approve marriages and divorce proceedings, discuss cases of adultery in public and recommend models for the proper organization of family life. Childbirth, too, was treated as a public event, given that it related to the appearance and upbringing of a new citizen, who was expected to perform certain functions within the social system. Maternity leave was brief and within two months babies were sent to baby-care units to be reared in accordance with the principles of a communist upbringing. Positivist thinking became dominant in medicine as well. The psychic and spiritual dimensions of illness were rejected; only the body was treated. Consequently, biomedical

The Molpoi Inscription: Ritual Prescription or Riddle?*

Greek ritual regulations are notoriously elliptical. Witness, for example, the 21st-century worshippers of the Hellenic gods who face great difficulties in their attempts to revive pagan rituals. Greece’s neo-pagans made their most spectacular appearance in August 2008, when they ascended the Acropolis to protest against the transportation of ancient votive objects from the old to the new Acropolis Museum. Dressed in white garments and crowned with wreaths, they raised their hands in prayer, ...