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Author Topic: "Sacramental" Paganism  (Read 4851 times)

Demophon

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"Sacramental" Paganism
« on: June 05, 2016, 10:46:01 pm »
There appears to be a connection between "high church" Christianity and paganism, in particular, traditional Wicca and the traditions that derive from it. I have been trying to think about what this is, as while there may be some superficial similarities in aesthetics and liturgy, they are very different in theology. It occurred to me that they share a kind of "sacramental" worldview, though this language isn't really used by pagans.

Officially, a sacrament is "an outward sign of an inward and invisible grace," although they also tend to have a religio-magical quality, in which a ceremonial action is deeply believed to cause a kind of unseen transformation in the person. While the seven Catholic sacraments (Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Matrimony, Holy Orders, Anointing of the Sick, and Reconciliation) are not really related to paganism very strongly, the kind of magical worldview and the importance of ritual is common ground.

The "themes" of the sacraments are common to pagan witchcraft, and probably most religions, really. Specifically, there are sacraments of initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist/Holy Communion), and healing (anointing, reconcilication/confession). The details may differ, but the general concepts of initiation and healing are shared with many traditions. Anointing of the sick is especially a kind of "magical" act, by anointing a sick or dying person with consecrated oil to heal them spiritually from sin. There are also sacramentals, which include things like consecrated water and religious objects blessed by a priest, like rosaries, medals, and symbolic actions of blessing, such as making the sign of the cross. "Magic" would probably be a problematic word to use in a Christian context, but it seems like there is certainly a supernatural element to these objects and actions, and that the priest has special power to bless water and objects for worship.

With Wicca in mind, I think there are similarities in that what is called "magic" in that context to sacramental objects and actions. Objects are consecrated in order to bring blessings, though all initiated Wiccans are considered priests and priestesses, so there is no clergy class with privileged access to the supernatural, but the intent is the same. The high symbolism and ritual, and the spiritual effects of such actions are valued in traditions that seem so different on the surface, but actually have a lot in common. I have met a lot of pagans who are former Catholics, so they probably feel comfortable in traditions that are so similar in practice. I myself feel comfortable in both contexts, and feel like I learn a lot about one from the other. There are some important differences also, but I think that a sacramental, or religio-magical, practice and wordview is common ground.

Louisvillian

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #1 on: June 09, 2016, 03:51:47 am »
Quote from: Demophon;192307
There appears to be a connection between "high church" Christianity and paganism, in particular, traditional Wicca and the traditions that derive from it.

That's unsurprising to me, for two reasons. One, is that outward signs of religious involvement are rather integral to an orthopraxic mindset, which is what has largely characterised both ancient polytheistic religions and their modern revivals. The second reason is that, in a bit going the other way, Wicca has roots in Christian ritualism due to its heavy influence from the Western Occult tradition.

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #2 on: June 09, 2016, 08:01:21 pm »
Quote from: Louisvillian;192449
That's unsurprising to me, for two reasons. One, is that outward signs of religious involvement are rather integral to an orthopraxic mindset, which is what has largely characterised both ancient polytheistic religions and their modern revivals. The second reason is that, in a bit going the other way, Wicca has roots in Christian ritualism due to its heavy influence from the Western Occult tradition.

 
Growing up Protestant, there were preachers that considered Catholics to be pagans in disguise. Being that Protestantism is largely orthodoxic, it makes sense why they saw that.

While I would never go that far, the first time I went to a Catholic Church I thought "witchcraft, witchcraft everywhere!" I was pretty excited. If I could get behind the creed I would definitely be Catholic.
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RecycledBenedict

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #3 on: June 10, 2016, 05:14:35 am »
Quote from: ViolaRae;192472
Growing up Protestant, there were preachers that considered Catholics to be pagans in disguise. Being that Protestantism is largely orthodoxic, it makes sense why they saw that.

While I would never go that far, the first time I went to a Catholic Church I thought "witchcraft, witchcraft everywhere!" I was pretty excited. If I could get behind the creed I would definitely be Catholic.


That attitude among Protestants isn't new, either. The Familist Protestant Reginald Scot (1538-1599) held the use of holy water, sign of the cross and blessed saint medals to be witchcraft, but he also denied that witchcraft 'worked', and wanted to end that witchcraft accusations ended up in court.

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #4 on: June 10, 2016, 05:52:51 am »
Quote from: Louisvillian;192449
The second reason is that, in a bit going the other way, Wicca has roots in Christian ritualism due to its heavy influence from the Western Occult tradition.

I very much agree with you, Louisvillian, on this point.

  • Medals, depicting saints or symbols connected to Christ or the holy Spirit, and blessed by priests, have been a part of Christian devotion for a long time (especially Roman Catholic devotion, but I know from personal experience that the expressions of spirituality by Anglicans/Episcopalians often - but not always - are indistinguishable from Roman Catholic ones). In grimoires other medals are blessed by ceremonial magicians.
  • Before the liturgical reforms in the 16th century, ceremonies on Rogation days (among other things) differed between dioceses. Some dioceses read the initial verses of the four gospels in the four directions, in order to bless the crops of the parish. The four directions are important in several grimoires (such as Heptameron) and of course in Agrippa's Occult Philosophy.
  • Segments of official Christian liturgy (especially Roman Catholic) are often used as preparations or conclusions of grimoiric magic. Some magical tools are supposed to be blessed by a Catholic (or Anglican) priest during the votive mass to the holy Spirit (Liber Iuratus Honorii and Heptameron are well-known examples of this). John de Morigny used the proper breviary office for Christmas as a preparation. The little office to the holy Spirit was used among a group of ceremonial magicians called Elus Cohens in the 18th century. Clavicula Salomonis is not a uniform work, and many manuscripts differ from S.L. MacGregor Mather's randomly chosen versions in his printed translation. Some manuscripts use the canticle Te Deum in the blessing of candles, and end the operation with the initial verses of the Gospel of St. John and the Apostolic Creed. Most manuscripts use the canticle Benedicite to bless salt. The seven penitential psalms are used in many grimoires - Clavicula Salomonis as well as Enchiridion and many others. The blessing of holy water is nicked right out of Roman Catholic liturgical books.
« Last Edit: June 10, 2016, 05:55:26 am by RecycledBenedict »

Demophon

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #5 on: June 10, 2016, 08:09:52 pm »
Quote from: Louisvillian;192449
That's unsurprising to me, for two reasons. One, is that outward signs of religious involvement are rather integral to an orthopraxic mindset, which is what has largely characterised both ancient polytheistic religions and their modern revivals.


Yes, and I think it allows people to have a tangible experience of the Divine by interacting with physical symbols of God. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the Catholic Church is a good example of this, where they put the consecrated wafer, which is the body of Christ, in a monstrance (kind of a golden picture frame for the host, on a stand, framed by rays of the sun), where people could gaze upon Christ's body in physical sense, having a sort of visual communion. Priests can also perform benediction with the Sacrament in the monstrance, holding it up and blessing the people with it. I think it's important for people to experience divinity in that way.

Quote from: ViolaRae;192472
While I would never go that far, the first time I went to a Catholic Church I thought "witchcraft, witchcraft everywhere!" I was pretty excited. If I could get behind the creed I would definitely be Catholic.

 
The first time I went to a Marian feast day at an Anglo-Catholic (high church Anglican) church, where there was a procession with banners, vestments, and incense swinging, where they stopped in front of the statue of the Virgin Mary and infant Jesus, incensing it while the priest said the collect (prayer) for the feast day, it felt like a festival right out of pagan antiquity.

Noctua

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #6 on: June 11, 2016, 09:20:58 am »
Quote from: Demophon;192511

The first time I went to a Marian feast day at an Anglo-Catholic (high church Anglican) church, where there was a procession with banners, vestments, and incense swinging, where they stopped in front of the statue of the Virgin Mary and infant Jesus, incensing it while the priest said the collect (prayer) for the feast day, it felt like a festival right out of pagan antiquity.

 
One of the things that kept me in Catholicism for so long was some of the borderline-Pagan worship that happens amongst Italian Catholics. Things like my hometown's annual Festa di San Lorenzo, where the image of the saint is brought out of the church and given a procession down the street (usually accompanied by San Rocco, the patron of our hometown church). The saint's statues wear vestments on this day, and people will pin money to the vestments as a sacrifice in hopes that their prayers will be answered. When the saints arrived at their final destination, bread that had been blessed with holy water would be distributed to the crowd, and then the feasting would begin- lots of Italian street food, but always accompanied by roasted goat in San Lorenzo's honor (he was a martyr who had been tortured by roasting over a fire).

It was after I left my hometown and the Italian Catholic community there that I essentially left the Catholic church. The church here doesn't have those folksy sorts of worship so it just feels so sterile, scrubbed away of anything that had meaning for me.

Demophon

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #7 on: June 12, 2016, 10:23:14 pm »
Quote from: Noctua;192520
One of the things that kept me in Catholicism for so long was some of the borderline-Pagan worship that happens amongst Italian Catholics. Things like my hometown's annual Festa di San Lorenzo, where the image of the saint is brought out of the church and given a procession down the street (usually accompanied by San Rocco, the patron of our hometown church). The saint's statues wear vestments on this day, and people will pin money to the vestments as a sacrifice in hopes that their prayers will be answered. When the saints arrived at their final destination, bread that had been blessed with holy water would be distributed to the crowd, and then the feasting would begin- lots of Italian street food, but always accompanied by roasted goat in San Lorenzo's honor (he was a martyr who had been tortured by roasting over a fire).

It was after I left my hometown and the Italian Catholic community there that I essentially left the Catholic church. The church here doesn't have those folksy sorts of worship so it just feels so sterile, scrubbed away of anything that had meaning for me.

 
That's really interesting. The Catholic Church is pretty good at absorbing local traditions and letting people keep their folk customs, but I can see how North American churches would be pretty bland compared to churches in the context of more traditional cultures.

The statue of the Virgin Mary at my Anglo-Catholic parish gets draped in lace on her feast days, and for the May Festival there's a procession around the block with rose petals thrown, banners carried, and the statue carried on a litter. I guess because Anglicans don't need to acknowledge Vatican II, they can keep the more traditional liturgical and folk customs.

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #8 on: October 25, 2016, 01:10:25 pm »
Quote from: Demophon;192307
There appears to be a connection between "high church" Christianity and paganism, in particular, traditional Wicca and the traditions that derive from it. I have been trying to think about what this is, as while there may be some superficial similarities in aesthetics and liturgy, they are very different in theology. It occurred to me that they share a kind of "sacramental" worldview, though this language isn't really used by pagans.

Officially, a sacrament is "an outward sign of an inward and invisible grace," although they also tend to have a religio-magical quality, in which a ceremonial action is deeply believed to cause a kind of unseen transformation in the person. While the seven Catholic sacraments (Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Matrimony, Holy Orders, Anointing of the Sick, and Reconciliation) are not really related to paganism very strongly, the kind of magical worldview and the importance of ritual is common ground.

The "themes" of the sacraments are common to pagan witchcraft, and probably most religions, really. Specifically, there are sacraments of initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist/Holy Communion), and healing (anointing, reconcilication/confession). The details may differ, but the general concepts of initiation and healing are shared with many traditions. Anointing of the sick is especially a kind of "magical" act, by anointing a sick or dying person with consecrated oil to heal them spiritually from sin. There are also sacramentals, which include things like consecrated water and religious objects blessed by a priest, like rosaries, medals, and symbolic actions of blessing, such as making the sign of the cross. "Magic" would probably be a problematic word to use in a Christian context, but it seems like there is certainly a supernatural element to these objects and actions, and that the priest has special power to bless water and objects for worship.

With Wicca in mind, I think there are similarities in that what is called "magic" in that context to sacramental objects and actions. Objects are consecrated in order to bring blessings, though all initiated Wiccans are considered priests and priestesses, so there is no clergy class with privileged access to the supernatural, but the intent is the same. The high symbolism and ritual, and the spiritual effects of such actions are valued in traditions that seem so different on the surface, but actually have a lot in common. I have met a lot of pagans who are former Catholics, so they probably feel comfortable in traditions that are so similar in practice. I myself feel comfortable in both contexts, and feel like I learn a lot about one from the other. There are some important differences also, but I think that a sacramental, or religio-magical, practice and wordview is common ground.


As a naturalistic pantheist what has appealed to me so much about my sacramental Episcopal background is its earthy worship and affirmation of the sacred character of matter, of this world.

And the sacraments and symbols naturally give so much expression for me to my psyche, my inner life.  The god(s) and communion of angels and saints and living and dead within me are able to burst forth in these rituals and find manifestation in the world.

The veil between the living and the dead, the past and the future, the sacred and the mundane is rent in twain and all things are one.

In many ways I am most comfortable living out my pagan-like and secular (this worldly) tendencies in this context.  I cannot relate to some paths which tend to separate the spiritual and physical for instance, or which seek to transcend the body and this life, or feel the need to temporarily focus on the non-physical to have spiritual time.

I fall squarely into the this-worldly pantheistic camp, and I have found sacramental Christianity to be very much compatible with that, at least in the more tolerant, less dogmatic forms.

Like you I do not care for sterilized liturgies.  The ceremonial liturgues have a palpable, earthly aspect to them.  I want to celebrate my physicality, not have everything cerebralized.
My personal moral code:

Love wisely, and do what thou wilt.

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #9 on: October 25, 2016, 01:11:19 pm »
Quote from: EclecticWheel;198036
As a naturalistic pantheist what has appealed to me so much about my sacramental Episcopal background is its earthy worship and affirmation of the sacred character of matter, of this world.

And the sacraments and symbols naturally give so much expression for me to my psyche, my inner life.  The god(s) and communion of angels and saints and living and dead within me are able to burst forth in these rituals and find manifestation in the world.

The veil between the living and the dead, the past and the future, the sacred and the mundane is rent in twain and all things are one.

In many ways I am most comfortable living out my pagan-like and secular (this worldly) tendencies in this context.  I cannot relate to some paths which tend to separate the spiritual and physical for instance, or which seek to transcend the body and this life, or feel the need to temporarily focus on the non-physical to have spiritual time.

I fall squarely into the this-worldly pantheistic camp, and I have found sacramental Christianity to be very much compatible with that, at least in the more tolerant, less dogmatic forms.

Like you I do not care for sterilized liturgies.  The ceremonial liturgues have a palpable, earthly aspect to them.  I want to celebrate my physicality, not have everything cerebralized.

 
I just saw this thread is a few months old.  I usually try not to reply to those.
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Demophon

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Re: "Sacramental" Paganism
« Reply #10 on: October 25, 2016, 07:28:31 pm »
Quote from: EclecticWheel;198036
As a naturalistic pantheist what has appealed to me so much about my sacramental Episcopal background is its earthy worship and affirmation of the sacred character of matter, of this world.

And the sacraments and symbols naturally give so much expression for me to my psyche, my inner life.  The god(s) and communion of angels and saints and living and dead within me are able to burst forth in these rituals and find manifestation in the world.

The veil between the living and the dead, the past and the future, the sacred and the mundane is rent in twain and all things are one.

In many ways I am most comfortable living out my pagan-like and secular (this worldly) tendencies in this context.  I cannot relate to some paths which tend to separate the spiritual and physical for instance, or which seek to transcend the body and this life, or feel the need to temporarily focus on the non-physical to have spiritual time.

I fall squarely into the this-worldly pantheistic camp, and I have found sacramental Christianity to be very much compatible with that, at least in the more tolerant, less dogmatic forms.

Like you I do not care for sterilized liturgies.  The ceremonial liturgues have a palpable, earthly aspect to them.  I want to celebrate my physicality, not have everything cerebralized.

 
Quote from: EclecticWheel;198037
I just saw this thread is a few months old.  I usually try not to reply to those.

 
Thanks for your response, I'm definitely in agreement with you. The more liturgical, sacramental branches of Christianity have a lot in common with paganism (generally speaking) in the way that worship involves all the physical senses, and that the spiritual is accessed through the physical.

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