December a month of Multi~Cultural
Celebrations
CHRISTMAS WHAT'S IT ALL
ABOUT
"Aho Mitakyue Oyasin" 'We are all one' _ Native
American Lakota
Understanding the
roots of Spirituality advocating religious tolerance and compassion
~ Golden Braid Ministries
December,
is the
twelfth and last
month of the
year in the
Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months
with the length of 31
days.
December begins
(astrologically) with the
sun
in the sign of
Sagittarius and ends in the sign of
Capricorn. Astronomically speaking, the sun begins in
the constellation of
Ophiuchus, which is the only zodiacal constellation that
is not counted as an astrological sign, and ends in the
constellation of
Sagittarius.
The name is
from the Latin decem for "ten".
Roman goddess, Vesta (December 5) (Greek: Hestia), the
goddess of virtue, purity, and the fire of the "Mystical Hearth of the
Cosmos", which symbolizes the eternal present. This honored the sanctity of
the home by making each household a shrine to the goddess. December is
filled with sacred festivals, as many early religions celebrated the birth
of the Sun-
Son or
Sun (Apollo, Dionysus, Odin, Helios, Horus, Jesus, Mithras, Osiris_ all
Patriarchal gods representing Father Sun) at this
time of the year. The
Roman celebration of Saturnalia, and its ancient myths and rites
honoring the first Father of all peoples and gods, even including Adam, as
ruler of Eden. This most likely has more to do with the zodiacal age as Sun
Worship was prevalent during the
age of Taurus, then we moved into Pieces, and of course we are presently
moving into Aquarius in this cycle.
Also honored this month are Pallas Athena (December 4), wisdom warrior; and
Ceres (December 13) (Greek: Demeter), Goddess of Motherhood and Mother
Earth: She who nourishes seeds in darkness; three of the four
goddesses for
whom the first asteroids were named. The fourth of the quartet of
asteroid
goddesses,
Juno (Greek: Hera) is honored on January 1st.Porphyry, Neoplatonist
philosopher and astrologer, born in Tyre about 234 AD, developed one of the
oldest quadrant methods of house division. He was a scholar, and a protégé
and biographer of Plotinus, and presented Plotinus' teachings in the form of
the Enneads (six groups of nine). In December there were tributes to
Porphyry, whose name means
"purple", the color of royalty.
December 6 is St. Nicholas's Day. St. Nicholas was
bishop of Myra
in Lycia, Asia Minor, during the fourth century. He's credited with
saving three sisters from lives of ill repute by throwing bags of gold into
their house (some say down the chimney) to provide for their dowries. In
many places here and abroad, children still hang their stockings by the
chimney or place their shoes by the window for St. Nicholas to fill with
presents and sweets on the eve of his feast day.
This story reminds us of the Roman myth of
the
three Fates,
or sometimes simply the 'Triple goddesses or the
Muses' the
sister
goddesses who are honored at the Winter Solstice, which is the end of the
old year and, beginning of the new year
for our Sun.
The Fates are also known as Parcae, (Greek: Moirae;
Scandinavian: Norns; Western Europe: Wyrdes; Indian: Niyati). The first
Fate, Decuma (Greek: Clotho, Scandinavian: Urd) was the "spinner" who bore
the distaff and spun the thread of life. The second Fate, Morta (Greek:
Lachesis, Scandinavian Verdani), was the "apportioner", who measured the
thread against a special rod, for the length of life), and the third Fate,
Nona (Greek: Atropos, Scandinavian: Skuld) called "The Inevitable", it was
she who snipped the thread at the end of life. These goddesses were also
invoked at the birth of a child to mete out its destiny.
Of
December's two
gemstones, turquoise is one of the first gems ever to be mined, and is
found in arid and semiarid lands – desert environments of many countries.
Colors range from green to blue. A third century myth states that turquoise
is said to protect a rider from falling off his or her horse. Native
Americans believe turquoise takes its blue from Heaven, its green from the
Earth. Traditionally, the turquoise is a stone of success and prosperity.
An alternate birthstone for December -
the
zircon - is sometimes called
an "imitation"
diamond. In ancient times, it was said to heal disease, and to bring sound
sleep to the wearer. In 14th century Europe, it was worn to protect the
wearer from the black plague. Zircons come in many different colors; the
most prized being red.
December celebrations include the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin
Mary on
December 8. Mme. Blavatsky
reminds us that She is not original with the Church of Rome, but is
remembered in every culture, including the early
Christian Collyridians, who made sacrificing cakes to honor the
Virgin goddess. She is also known as the Mayan Mother - Astraea,
goddess of Justice, and the
Virgin of Guadalupe
in Mexican lore.
December 8 is also the Buddhist holiday,Rohatsu
or Bodhi Day it is the day that the Buddha achieved enlightenment while
meditating underthe Bodhi tree.
Hanukkah
(Chanukah), sometimes
called the Jewish
Holiday of Lights is an eight-day celebration of hope and faith that
starts on December 26th (at sundown on December 25th). It is a time used to
reaffirm beliefs and to be thankful for successes and achievements. The
lights of astrology, the Sun and the Moon support the integration of
personal ideals into practical, every-day living.
December 16 is a celebration of
Sophia, Goddess of Wisdom.
It is said that when she is discovered within, the idea of a Divine Feminine
principle triggers an upsurge of creative spirituality will overcome
outmoded dogmas and orthodoxy. Jung presented the Divine Feminine in four
interrelated aspects of western archetypes: Eve – the fertile Earth mother;
Helen of Troy –
the inspirational romanticized ultra feminine MotherMary – the
spiritual virgin Earth mother; and Sophia – the wise woman, the indwelling
spark of the World–Soul.
And then there is Magdalene,
one of the most mysterious characters surrounding the story of Jesus~
Sananda and his experience in Judea and the Crucifixion. Little is known of her story as is
little told in the text of the Roman Edited Bible, but
the
story of the Magdalene, and it is documented in several texts;
including the Coptic texts of Egypt, and taught to this day by the Essenes.
Advent, the four-week spiritual preparation for
Christmas began on November 27, and each Sunday is set aside for special
Advent ceremonies. Advent gets its origins in ancient Celtic/Germanic
traditions having to do with the celebration of hope and renewal of Body,
Mind, Spirit,
which left us with specific ancient traditions and customs for the preparation
of the
Advent Wreath, which is where the Christmas Wreath comes from when you
think about it.
The emphasis surrounding Advent on spiritual matters is shared by
the traditional nature religions in preparation for the return of the Sun, which begins at
the winter solstice.
The word advent means "the coming." It begins on the
fourth Sunday before Christmas, and marks the beginning of the Christian
year. Advent is a time to celebrate the Light in the midst
of darkness.
Christmas, the celebration of the nativity of the Christ Child, symbolizes
the return of the Light to the world, and the gift of Life.
Jalal al-Din
Rumi, also known as Mevlana,
meaning "our guide", Persian Sufi poet and mystic was born 9/30/1207 in
Balkh, Persia (now Afghanistan), and died 12/17/1273 in Konya (now Turkey).
His doctrine advocates unlimited tolerance, positive reasoning, goodness,
charity and awareness through love. To him and his disciples, all religions
are more or less true. Looking with the same eye on Muslim, Jew, Buddhist
and Christian alike, his peaceful and tolerant teaching has appealed to men
and women of all sects and creeds. He is honored on December 17 each year.
December 23 is the blank day in the Celtic calendar that has no ruling tree,
called "The
Secret of the Unhewn Stone." It is a day
symbolizing
time and timelessness – between the end of the old cycle
and
untapped potential of the new.
Latene the alpha and the Omega.
http://www.uni-trier.de/uni/fb2/philologie/celtscr.pdf#search='Latene'
Winter Solstice, or Yule
is associated with the completion of the out breath of the year; the
pause of midwinter; the longest night of the year. Yule, celebrated by the
ancient Goths at the time of the winter solstice in honor of the Sun,
according to ancient Norse Myth, (Iul
– meaning wheel) is the beginning of the Great Wheel of the
Zodiac, the Wheel of Life, at the time of the turning point when the Sun is
reborn to the world.
The
Yule log,
cut traditionally from the ash-tree,Yaggdrasil
(the world-tree, whose roots were knotted in Hell and its boughs
supported Heaven). This Tree of Life sheltered the Norns, an example of the
Celtic
triple-goddess: Urth (the past), Verdandi (the present), and Skuld (the
future) who lovingly tended the tree.
In Norse tradition, the festival of Yule ( The 12 days of Christmas~December 26-January 6) assigns 4 days to each of the Norns to
honor the turning of the year. New Year's day, the middle of this period has
become a day when we remember the past and
plan for the
future, making resolutions to better our lives, and invoking the assistance
of these triune sister goddesses.
December 31 is the Scottish New Year's festival of
Hogmanay, named for a solar giant who was magically divided into
two giants,
Gog and Magog. He was portrayed as the spiritual guardian of London.
The associated shamanic ritual transforms the negative vestiges of the
old year into a positive offering.
"…You
would measure time the measureless and the immeasurable. You would
adjust your conduct and even direct the course of your spirit according
to hours and seasons. Of time you would make a stream upon whose bank
you would sit and watch its flowing. Yet the timeless in you is aware of
life's timelessness, and knows that yesterday is but today's memory and
tomorrow is today's dream. …But if in your thought you must measure time
into seasons, let each season encircle all the other seasons, And let
today embrace the past with remembrance and the future with longing."
’On
Time’,
from ‘The
Prophet’ by Kahlil Gibran
THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS or as
the Ancient Celts called it The Yule:
December 26 thru January 6
THE CALENDAR
&THE
BYZANTINE WORLD
To the Eastern Church
The winter solstice was considered to be 6 January, so the
pagan festival of The Birth of the Invincible Sun was held
on that day. Alexandrian Christians began celebrating the
Incarnation on 6 January so that they could have something
Christian to celebrate while everyone else was having a
party. They called their celebration Epiphany, which means
manifestation in Greek, a "recognition" of or "insight" into
a reality of something. Epiphany is about a journey and the
one who guides our quest to uncover the full meaning of
Christ in our lives: the gift of God's love revealed through
the Word, prayer, worship, and sacrament.
What is the Feast of Epiphany?
The early Church celebrated four different manifestations,
which focused on Jesus' appearance near the beginning of
each Gospel. Luke focuses on Jesus' birth with the angels
announcement to the shepherds (Lk 2). Matthew looks at the
manifestation of Jesus to the Magi ("Wise Ones" of Gentile
origin, Mt 2). Mark begins his Gospel with God's declaration
of Jesus as the "Beloved Son" at his baptism (Mk 1). John
focuses on Jesus' first miracle at the wedding in Cana (Jn
2).
The Western Church or Church of Rome
by the fifth century celebrated the feast of
the Epiphany with the themes of the adoration of the wise
men. Epiphany, is also called the Twelve Days of Christmas
(December 26 to January 6), marks the time the star traveled
across the sky before resting above the stable in Bethlehem.
Some families move the Magi in their nativity set a bit
closer each day until they are placed in the stable on
the
Feast of Epiphany.
What is "Little Christmas"?
In the Spanish-speaking world, Christmas Day is strictly
religious. Gifts are exchanged on the feast of the Epiphany,
also known as Little Christmas, when the wise men (or Magi)
brought
gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to the infant
Yashua/Jesus.
Who were the Magi? Some
scholars say they were from six tribes or castes into which, according to
Herodotus, the
Medes
were divided.
The Magi came to ascendancy first among the
Medes and later among the Persians by assuming the priestly
functions related to
Zoroastrianism. By New Testament times the term
"Magi" was broadly used for persons adept in any number of
sacred arts, including interpretation of dreams, meditation
of divine messages, astrology, magic and divination, they
universally represented the Masters, in fact to many they
literally represented the Great White Brotherhood.
Western religious observation of Epiphany has centered on the
figures of the Magi, popularly called the Three Kings.
Traditionally they have been given the names of
Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthasar. Their order was and
remains to this day
especially strong at Cologne, Germany. in the Middle
Ages, for their supposed relics had been brought there in
the 12th century. There is a Cathedral in Cologne,
that even to today, lays claim to be the keepers of several
Three Kings relics. In Christian myth, the idea that the Magi were kings
was derived from Ps. 71:10 and Isaiah 60: 3-6. The tradition
that there were three of them probably derived from the
number of gifts mentioned in the biblical account of their
visit Matthew 2: 1-12.
Most
Christmas Crèches include three wise men. There is no
hard evidence of the exact number of Magi present. The
account, of the visit of the Magi and of the miraculous star
that guided them, inspired several mystery plays during the
Middle Ages. The story of their visit gave rise to the
custom of gift giving on Epiphany, especially in Italy and
Spanish cultures.
AND YOU
THOUGHT
The X in XMAS
One of the most misinterpreted words in the Christmas
vocabulary is "Xmas." Many Christians contend that using "X"
in place of "Christ" is the way that atheists take the
"Christ out of Christmas." In fact, the opposite is true.
The X has been used by theologians for hundreds of years to
denote chi, the first
letter in the Greek spelling of the word "Christ." It
is meant to represent Christ and remind the reader of the
cross upon which he was hung. (Dictionary.com,
Xmas)
SO HAVE
YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS
May you have -
Walls for the wind
And a roof for the rain,
And drinks bedside the fire
Laughter to cheer you
And those you love near you,
Celtic Blessing
This Site is enhanced and adapted
in part
from an Essay by
Roxana Muise
C.A.P.