Doctor Who Club of Australia

[Seamus]

Hello,

Anyone here into Paganism?

I wouldn't mind celebrating Yule in a pre-Christian fashion... if I knew how.

I know little about Paganism - just something about a sun good and a moon goddess or god or something. I think "The Goddess" is a Wiccan deity.

I have this notion Paganism is somewhat in tune with nature - with "Mother Earth" - (wearing my Rose-coloured Glasses regarding Paganism) while Christianity is a cultural amalgum contrived for political gain.

I also want to know if Southern Hemisphere Pagan rituals are in opposition to that of the Northern Hemisphere and should Aussie Pagans celebrate Yule in July and not December/January?

Any tips appreciated. I'll Google on this topic and wish I'd looked into it earlier because maybe I could have draped my workplace with statuettes of "The Goddess" and Ivy or real missletow (sp?) - or whatever.

I just want to thumb my nose a little at Christian tradition and reminisce and imagine how my Irish and French ancestors may have celebrated in a pre-Christian era.

EDIT - Here is a little on the Winter Solstice and Yule.

"The Winter Solstice is the day where there is the shortest time between the sun rising and the sun setting. It happens between December 22nd and December 25th. To pagans this meant that the winter was over and spring was coming and they had a festival to celebrate it and worshipped the sun for winning over the darkness of winter. (The Winter Solstice in Scandinavia and some other parts of northern Europe is called Yule.)"

So "Christmas in July" is not far off the mark? This is our "Yule" time? Our Winter Solstice... or is it June?

[g,uest]

The so called Christians are Disgracful, for what they did in the past
'They stole the Pagan's Ritual's & ceremonies and made it there own

For the events that people celebrate in the months of December & March,
Are quite an insult.. If you know the Pagan-origins, and then how they where Stolen by Hypocrites

[Sulp Niar]

Aye, and the Romans nicked theirs from the Greeks. That sort of stuff just happens. There's no such thing as a religion separate to all the others.

[SharazJek]

[dave]

I'd like to see you prove otherwise, SJ.

[SharazJek]

[dave]

So you need a bit of 'Anaesthetize' eh?

It's a good one, for sure

[Sulp Niar]

[montypython]

[Ickabod]

Apparently when JC disappeared before he started preaching, he went to many different countries to study different religions

[Greg]

Nah, a number of religions arise from similar roots. Both Jews and Muslims recognise Jesus as a great prophet - just not the son of God or someone worth following as your personal lord and saviour.

[Ickabod]

[Panecea]

All human paradigms suffer from the same ailments to some degree. The idea is generated with good intentions. They're then warped and changed through the millennia to suit the popular culture of the time.

[dave]

[Panecea]

My comment is made in a general sense and it is accurate within that context. You'll find that through out the ages small bits of history have been distorted to illustrate and reinforce particular ideologies.

Humans are notoriously brilliant at justifying their position, whether or not it is considered right in an idealistic sense.

This appplies to nearly every human paradigm, including religion. You'll find that the culture of today is one of indifference, no one group is completely accepting of the other and so they merely tolerate the others existence. In time this will change, yes, but we are not there yet and popular culture reflects this.

I believe you are confusing popular culture with idealism. Popular culture is only partly reflected in media. Popular culture is referred to as such because it is considered to be the general attitude of the populus.

[Greg]

Islam is a newer religion, but it has generated variations. The Shi'ites, for example, are more fundamentalist than the Sunnis.

Similarly, it is inaccurate to say that all Christians are opposed to homosexual relationships, even if some point to various passages in the Bible that same sex* sexual activity with disfavour, although many of them are nestled close to other passages that are opposed to the eating of shellfish and others that say it is OK to eat any insect as long as it hops! The Bible supports many activities we generally abhor today (as do the Talmud and the Koran).

And possibly Panecea's use of 'paradigm' is correct - after all, you mention vegetarianism, and that has been used by some to generate extra cash for companies and individuals rather than seeking to killing animals simply for a meal.

* Pedants please note: the Bible is silent on the issue of homosexuality as it is a term coined during the 18th century, and has been in use in English a bit over 100 years.

[Panecea]

Thank you for illustrating my point, Greg.

[SharazJek]

[montypython]

[Greg]

666 is also the broadcast frequency of ABC radio in Canberra - and the number of one of the traffic light signal boxes on King St, Newtown - not very far from the the DWCA Tavern occurs on the first Friday of each month.

I draw no conclusions from either of these facts.