by Wolfmoon Lady » Mon May 22, 2006 2:09 pm
Rothbardian writes:<!--EZCODE QUOTE START--><blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr> The runic alphabet originates directly out of occult practices and witchcraft. It is virtually the satanic alphabet. (The word ‘runic’ means ‘secret’.) <hr></blockquote><!--EZCODE QUOTE END--><br><br>I'm starting with a bit of background on Runes, for those who are interested. (I majored in anthropology, with a particular interest in mythology and religion among pre-Christian peoples and I don't attribute every use of ancient symbols to Satanism or its practices.)<br><br>First and foremost, runes are a kind of alphabet. They were used by the Germanic peoples to mark possessions, gravestones, and were inscribed on weaponry. Like Egyptian hieroglyphs, runes hold the key to understanding Viking culture. Without runes, we would know precious little about the Norse peoples and their language. The earliest Runes date from the Bronze Age (1300 BCE).<br><br>The Vikings did not practice Satanism in the sense that we understand it today. In other words, they'd have had to practice Christianity in order to embrace or worship Christ's evil counterpart, Satan. However, the Vikings didn't accept Christianity until around 200 AD, as part of their cultural assimilation with the Anglo-Saxons. Prior to that, as most Europeans, they were a pagan people, as were the Greeks and Romans. That does not make them Satanists.<br><br>For that matter, I've seen instances where occultists used Theban runes and Latin script. Some, who follow the Egyptian mystery cults, use hieroglyphs. The Germanic runes are no more sinister, or specific to Satanistic beliefs, than any other ancient form of writing. However, I agree the Runes have magical and divination uses, and it's important to understand these practices within the context of ancient Germanic culture.<br><br>In <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--><em>Germania</em><!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->, written around CE 97, and one of the first ethnographic texts, the Roman historian Tacitus writes:<br><!--EZCODE QUOTE START--><blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr><br>To divination they pay much attention. Their method is a simple one: they cut a branch from a fruit-bearing tree and divide it into small pieces which they mark with certain distinctive signs and scatter at random onto a white cloth. Then the priest of the community (if it is done publicly) or the father of the family (if it is done privately) after invoking the gods and with eyes raised to heaven, picks up three pieces one at a time and interprets them in accordance with the signs previously marked on them.<hr></blockquote><!--EZCODE QUOTE END--><br><br>It's good to understand the runes origins and place in the culture and history of the Germanic peoples, and how some, of Germanic ancestry, still use runes, even though they are devoutly Christian. For example, the Pennsylvania Dutch have used runic symbology since they settled in America. The familiar hex-symbols on the barns and houses usually incorporate several runic glyphs, usually meant for protection and house blessings. They still use folk healers (called "Pow-Wows") who incorporate Christian prayers with their workings.<br><br>So, yes, runes are used for all kinds of reasons and by many kinds of people. This practice is as old as human culture. I read somewhere that their use in rural England was so widespread that Thomas Hardy pooh-poohed their significance as "worth nothing more than finding a lost cow."<br><br>(FWIW : Another example of a Christian culture that includes elements of their pagan past is the Irish/Celtic culture. The bale fires of Lughnassadh and Beltane, for example, still burn all across Ireland and Scotland. Gifts are still left for the Fairies, and many believe the spirit mounds are inhabited by the wee folk. These are pagan practices. The word 'pagan' comes from the word 'pagani' - from the Latin, meaning country-dweller, civilian, and carries the connotations of superstition and simple-mindedness by comparison to city-dwellers. Not evil and not a Satan worshipper, but someone not educated in the ways of institutionalized religion.)<br><br>It's worth pointing out that most of us wouldn't even know about the swastika, let alone consider it an evil symbol, if not for Hitler. The swastika is a universal symbol, seen in multiple instances throughout many world cultures. To the Germanic people, it was a sun symbol, fyi, which meant LIFE, and an acknowledgement of the power of natural forces. To wear the swastika was to draw the power of the sun into oneself for power. The Norse were a warrior people with a very distinct worldview about the afterlife. (Valhalla was a place of brawling and drunkenness, after all, and only heroes could go there. I guess this mythology appealed to Dolph and fiends.)<br><br>Rothbardian writes: <!--EZCODE QUOTE START--><blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr> After all...what on God’s green earth is Michael doing out there in the snow, standing on a chair in this (otherwise) utterly inexplicable position…and with no indication whatsoever as to what this is about?? (One researcher half-jokingly asked: “Where’s the manger scene, by the way?”) <hr></blockquote><!--EZCODE QUOTE END--><br>Are you saying that if Smith does feature a manger scene he is not being appropriately Christian? I can't comment on that. <br><br>Whether or not Michael Smith is a practicing Satanist, I couldn't say by the photo. I do see him using runic symbology in the Christmastime CD cover. In this pose, Smith is making the sign of Tyr (the Sky God), who (according to Norse mythology) sacrificed his hand to the Fenris Wolf in order to save others. It is also a warrior symbol of great courage, and of overcoming death. He is standing on an M, which is the rune for Mankind. I don't see that as sinister but make of it what you will. Perhaps it might be useful to consider Smith's background. Could he be of Germanic or Scandanavian origin? If not, maybe he's a white supremacist. That movement certainly uses runes in symbol and practice.<br><br>Anyway, this is getting really long.<br><br>Morgan<br><br>See, for reference, <!--EZCODE LINK START--><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyr" target="top">TYR</a><!--EZCODE LINK END-->, Wikipedia<br><br>See, also, <!--EZCODE LINK START--><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/vikings/evidence_02.shtml" target="top">How Do We Know About the Vikings?</a><!--EZCODE LINK END--><br>By Gareth Williams<br><br>See, also: <!--EZCODE LINK START--><a href="http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/vikings/write.html" target="top">The History of Runes</a><!--EZCODE LINK END--><br><br>See, also: <!--EZCODE LINK START--><a href="http://www.sunnyway.com/runes/links2.html" target="top">Rune Websites from Around the World</a><!--EZCODE LINK END--> <p></p><i></i>