Questions???

[pattyann]

:0
Okay eaglewolf, Mol said to ask newbie Q here, so what is "sabbats" "Wiccan" and "druids". Does one pick a pagan name themself & if so how? I love this site! now I can ask my Q without feeling stupid. Many thanks to my daughter for inviting me here.
pattyann

[mol]

A Sabbat in the simplest terms is a Pagan holiday! Just as Christmas is a holiday for Christians. There are 8 Sabbats. 4 Greater and 4 Lesser.

They are:

Yule
Imbolc
Vernal Equinox (Ostara, Eostar)
Beltane
Midsummer (Summer Solstice)
Lughnasadh
Mabon
Samhain

For now...just look at the names...and we will take them one by one to get you aquainted with them.

[Twig]

Greetings PattyAnn! I saw your question and love it. Remember,there are no stupid questions,only unanswered ones!

As to "what is a Druid?". The druids were the "priest caste" of the ancient english and gaulish peoples from approx. 3000BC-60AD when they were systematically destroyed by foreign invaders and replaced by the christian church. Most all we know of them is from archeological evidence and 2nd hand information.

The druids of today are an earth based religion loosely equated with wicca and other pagan religions. We are not satanist or anything of that sort(As some would lead you to belive).

For more information,I refer you to my druid forum. Everyone is welcome with open arms in friendship.
Peace,
Twig
Resident Druid

[Kaylara]

Pagan is a broad term used to describe religions that do not have a focus on patriarchy and monotheism. So, anything pretty much that is outside of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic context, is considered to be pagan. Thus Buddhism, Tribal religions, Wiccans, Druids, and all other (non-mainstream) religions are lumped together under the name of paganism. (pagan means "country dweller" and was a derogitory term for the peasants who still practiced their native religions after Christianity became practiced by the aristocrats.)

For people who call themselves pagans (i think that I can safely say.) that they believe in divinity as being embodied in nature and the universe. (sorry if I am stepping on some peoples toes here, I can only really speak for myself.)

Wicca is a pagan religion, who has a goddess and a god which is embodied in everything. Now, there are as many different view points on Wicca as there are Wiccans, so I can only tell you what my belief is. I put equal focus on the Goddess and the God which I see as being in everything in the universe from the smallest grain of sand to the largest mountain. The goddess and the god to me are aspects of the total divine, they are the light and the dark, yin and yang, dry and wet. One can not exist with out the other, and so they seek to be in balance. Nature is to my way of thinking, one of the most wonderful things ever created. I seek to become in sync with nature and the energies that reside therein, and to act accordingly. Wicca focuses on personal advancement along one's path, and knowledge as being one vehicle to help this advancement. This religion does not condemn anyone else's path because all paths are equal ways to find the divine.
My Catholic Grandma put it very well when she said "God, in his infinate wisdom knew that not everyone would be able to worship him the same way, that different people would need to see him differently to walk their paths. That is why God showed different people different aspects of himself. So everyone could worship him and feel his love."

As far as names go, some of us pick our own, (I am pretty sure that some traditions of wicca give their initiates their names)and some are given their names upon initiation. For the most part though, the name is one that reflects your personality, or one that calls to you. Some people take their names out of books, from their spirit animals, from gods and goddesses that they feel close to, from numerology, or just a name that they heard and felt described them adequately.

I hope that this helps.

Blessed Be!
Kaylara



[Edited by Kaylara on 02-16-2001 at 12:16 PM]

[mol]

We managed to answer all of her questions and i appreciate all of you for your help.

pattyann: I know you are probably on the road right now. I have not forgotten you. I am working on a system for you to use so that you can still participate with this Community.

[pattyann]

Originally posted by Twig
Greetings PattyAnn! I saw your question and love it. Remember,there are no stupid questions,only unanswered ones!

As to "what is a Druid?". The druids were the "priest caste" of the ancient english and gaulish peoples from approx. 3000BC-60AD when they were systematically destroyed by foreign invaders and replaced by the christian church. Most all we know of them is from archeological evidence and 2nd hand information.

The druids of today are an earth based religion loosely equated with wicca and other pagan religions. We are not satanist or anything of that sort(As some would lead you to belive).

For more information,I refer you to my druid forum. Everyone is welcome with open arms in friendship.
Peace,
Twig
Resident Druid
Thanks Twig: I will do that

[pattyann]

Thanks to you all for the info. I am learning so much here (the whole site).
pattyann

[mol]

Originally posted by pattyann
Thanks to you all for the info. I am learning so much here (the whole site).
pattyann

Glad to hear it! Keep on learning...