#Easter Catholic Hope

[daincrediblegg]

Easter literally has no religious meaning and never did. Thats the day that twink priest burned down crockett island show some respect.

[carmelitesaet]

Jesus said:

‘I tell you most solemnly, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand. The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out his flock, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They never follow a stranger but run away from him: they do not recognise the voice of strangers.’

Jesus told them this parable but they failed to understand what he meant by telling it to them.

So Jesus spoke to them again:

‘I tell you most solemnly, I am the gate of the sheepfold. All others who have come are thieves and brigands; but the sheep took no notice of them. I am the gate. Anyone who enters through me will be safe: he will go freely in and out and be sure of finding pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full.’

[momentsbeforemass]

Hope

(for someone whose middle name is Hope)

You and I say hope about a lot of different things.

When we buy a raffle ticket, we hope to win.

When we watch a ballgame, we hope our team wins.

There’s nothing wrong with that. But that’s only scratching the surface. You and I know that there’s a lot more to hope than that.

Which is why we don’t stop there. You and I hope when it comes to the hard stuff too.

When we get laid off, we hope to find a job.

When our marriage falls apart, we hope to find someone new.

When we get the diagnosis, we hope the treatment works.

But what happens to our hope, when things don’t work out?

When the lawsuit is dragging on, with no end in sight?

When the addiction comes roaring back?

When we’re not getting better?

When the hard stuff in life doesn’t go away, it’s easy to lose faith. To give up hope.

To tell ourselves the worst things. Things like “it’ll never work out,” “I should have seen this coming,” “God doesn’t really care about me.”

When you and I do that? It says a lot about what’s going on inside us.

What it says is that there’s something missing from our hope. That our hope has no roots, no anchor. Because it’s not really hope at all. Not hope in God anyway.

That what we’re calling hope is more of you and me “hoping” that nothing bad will ever happen.

It’s not real hope.

What is real hope? Real hope is hard. Because real hope takes trust.

Trust in God. Trust that whether the hard stuff goes away, or we go through it, that God will be with us in all of it.

That God will never abandon us. No matter what.

That’s a tall order. So what does that look like?

Real hope – looks like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. And the hardest prayer you or I or anyone will ever pray. To say to God, from the bottom of your heart,

“Father, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

And you’re thinking, “hold on, I know how that worked out. Badly. It’s called Good Friday.”

You’re right. But…only up to a point.

If that’s all there is to the story. If it ends with Good Friday.

Then Jesus would be in the history books as one of the least successful Jewish revolutionaries of the First Century. Of interest only to professional historians. And even then, not so much. More like a footnote.

If that’s all there is to the story. If it ends with Good Friday.

But you and I know better. That Good Friday isn’t the whole story.

Because sometimes, just like Jesus prayed, the way out? Is through.

That is what Easter Sunday is all about.

In spite of everything that was done to Him. All that He went through on Good Friday.

It still ends up on Easter Sunday. Because Easter Sunday shows us what it means to go through the very worst things in life – with God.

Easter Sunday shows us that even when the way out is through? We don’t have to do it alone.

That when we go through the hardest things in life with God. In the spirit of, “God, not what I will, but what you will.”

Even if we can’t see where it’s going. Or if we can see where it’s going, and we’re scared.

Even if we’ve got doubts. Or if we’re praying that prayer in anger.

“God, not what I will, but what you will.”

If that’s where we’re going. No matter how imperfectly. If that’s where our hearts are headed.

“God, not what I will, but what you will.”

Then one thing is certain - our Easter Sunday is coming.

This is the root, this is the anchor of our hope.

Easter Sunday shows us that no matter what we’re going through, even the hardest things in life. That God loves us too much to abandon us.

This is the reason for our hope.

We can trust God to see us through.

Because our Easter Sunday is coming.

Sunday’s Readings

[birdnoticer]

Jesus as an AO3 writer:

Authors note:

Hey guys !!! SO sorry about the wait ! I got crucified over the weekend but I resurrected and managed to get this done in the tomb, hope it's okay >.< forgive me for any errors 🙏🏾 i only had 3 days to work on it, love you guys 😶‍🌫️

[releasing-my-insanity]

Posters and fliers from ACGAS 2020 set dressing taken by Real Yorkshire Tours.

[eggy-tea]

Just going to vague about it because I don't actually follow any of these people and this is tangential to the post itself, but I saw an anonymous ask to the tune of "Why do you care about atrocities going on in the world if you're an atheist (unlike me, a principled believer)? Everyone dies; why does it matter how or when if you're not concerned about the afterlife?" and like...

It's really hard to deny the death cult allegations when you're out here straight-up admitting that within your moral framework, the only thing that matters is death, and the only thing that gives death any meaning is adherence to your religion. Death + Cult = Death Cult.

[pinkie-satan]

been thinking how weird this whole 'father son and holy spirit are one being but also three separate beings' thing is but then it hit me. they are one yet many. then i understood. without love it cannot be seen. funny how bible copied ryukishi

[theoneobserving]

The priest at church tonight said no matter what we face in life, we always have hope and that the resurrection changes everything for humanity

Lord, thank you so much for everything you have given us and continue to give us

[quinnmorgendorffer]

I have to say that looking over the average Springsteen setlist, I’m mostly depressed about him not playing “I’m on Fire”

[mothermarysprotection]

Today's Catholic Mass Readings and Gospel Reflection | Resurrection of t...

[carmelitesaet]

Two of the disciples of Jesus were on their way to a village called Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking together about all that had happened. Now as they talked this over, Jesus himself came up and walked by their side; but something prevented them from recognising him. He said to them, ‘What matters are you discussing as you walk along?’ They stopped short, their faces downcast.

Then one of them, called Cleopas, answered him, ‘You must be the only person staying in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these last few days.’ ‘What things?’ he asked. ‘All about Jesus of Nazareth’ they answered ‘who proved he was a great prophet by the things he said and did in the sight of God and of the whole people; and how our chief priests and our leaders handed him over to be sentenced to death, and had him crucified. Our own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free. And this is not all: two whole days have gone by since it all happened; and some women from our group have astounded us: they went to the tomb in the early morning, and when they did not find the body, they came back to tell us they had seen a vision of angels who declared he was alive. Some of our friends went to the tomb and found everything exactly as the women had reported, but of him they saw nothing.’

Then he said to them, ‘You foolish men! So slow to believe the full message of the prophets! Was it not ordained that the Christ should suffer and so enter into his glory?’ Then, starting with Moses and going through all the prophets, he explained to them the passages throughout the scriptures that were about himself.

When they drew near to the village to which they were going, he made as if to go on; but they pressed him to stay with them. ‘It is nearly evening’ they said ‘and the day is almost over.’ So he went in to stay with them. Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognised him; but he had vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, ‘Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?’

They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven assembled together with their companions, who said to them, ‘Yes, it is true. The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.’ Then they told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognised him at the breaking of bread.

[Luke 24:13-35]

[xx-gold-n-sunshine-xx]

The last few days had been shit. Complete, whole, certified organic shit. Now, could today get any worse? Who knew? She still had four hours left of her shift to find out with, not that she wanted to add to the list of things making her want to just burst into tears, but that was the truth.

"Have a nice day." She told a customer as they walked away with their bag of food, forcing a hollow smile to her face as she watched them leave. None of these people knew or cared about her problems, so she wouldn't let on that there were any. She'd just smile and keep being her usual, cheerful, dorky self and nobody would suspect a thing. They'd never have any way of knowing that she was just one more minor inconvenience or fuck up away from having a total breakdown.

She was weak. She was pathetic. She couldn't talk to anyone. They wouldn't listen even if she did. She was better off just up and leaving again. Nobody here cared about her. Nobody here cared at all.

"Roxanne?" A voice jolted her back to reality. "Are you ok?"

Her heart stopped for a moment as she looked up from her register, glancing into the concerned brown eyes of her manager.

"Oh, uh, yeah..." Roxanne smiled at her supervisor, faking a yawn into her arm as she leaned against the counter. "Just tired."

"Alright, well..." Her manager reached down under the counter, grabbing a red bucket of soapy water. "You know what Jake says."

Roxanne rolled her eyes with a mildly annoyed grin. "Yeah, yeah, if there's time to lean, there's time to clean."

[supercool-here]

Él siempre volverá

Él siempre vencerá

Él es la luz brillando en la oscuridad

[ancientcraftnoccultism]

Introduction To Candle Magic

Ancient Craft & Occultism

___

By KB

Introduction

Welcome back witches in training! We've been covering a lot of ground bases lately, especially within the realms of spellwork. Today, we're going to take that a bit further by opening our horizons to the infinite world of Candle Magic! In this lesson, we're going to discuss basic color magic, the history of candles, and how to use candles in your craft. Let's get to it!

A Brief Candle History

The exact origin of the candle is quite a debate among historical scholars, but there is a large sum of evidence that suggests candles made of beeswax were used in Egypt and Crete as early as 3000 BCE. Other early candles were fashioned using tallow-soaked tapers manufactured from fibrous materials like rushes. Rushlights were one of the first types of enclosed light we are aware of, yet they were unlike candles as we know them today because they lacked a wick. The impoverished continued to utilize them for centuries because they were also inexpensive to produce.

It may come as no surprise that the Romans are credited with creating the first wicked candles by continuously dipping a roll of papyrus into tallow, a converted form of beef or mutton fat, while wrapping it around a length of twine. Candles were still used in the same manner, but they had superior quality and a longer lifespan than rushlights.

However, candle production was not only practiced by the Romans. Wicked candles were "invented" by numerous other ancient civilizations who also used local plant-based waxes. The eulachon fish, which is so oily that when dried, it would burn like a candle when you ignite one end, was used as a candle by tribes in Alaska and Canada. The Chinese used wrapped ricepaper as wicks. In India, wax was created from the fruit of the cinnamon tree.

Candles, in any form, were a significant component of religious rites throughout this time. The Jewish Festival of Lights, Hanukkah, was originally documented around 165 B.C. Constantine, the Roman emperor between 306 and 337 A.D., mandated the use of lamps during Easter celebrations. Indeed, from roughly the time of Constantine, lights have played a significant role in religious events and signify the purifying light of God.

Candle flames were seen by ancient peoples to reveal enigmatic things. One could experience an altered state of consciousness and see gods, spirits, or the future by gazing into a flame. In a magic ceremony for "dreaming true," or getting information from dreams, the late Egyptians of the third century B.C. utilized lamps and possibly candles. He retired to a pitch-black cave that faced south and sat there gazing into a flame till he saw a god. Then he went to sleep, hoping that the deity would show up in his dreams and provide him with the answers he was looking for.

The Roman Christian scholar Tertullian fiercely objected to the ancient Pagan practice of lighting candles and lights during religious ceremonies, calling it "the useless lighting of lamps at noon." Candles and lamps were used in Christian rites from the fourth century, but candles weren't put on church altars until the later Middle Ages, starting in the twelfth century. Consecrated holy candles are used in ceremonies for blessings, atonement for sins, and the exorcism of demons, all of which were instituted by the Catholic Church.

Using Candles In The Craft

Candles have long been used as versatile tools, but in witchcraft, they can also be used for divination, spirit sensing, casting spells, and a variety of other things. Let's jump right in.

Divination - Reading the wax and observing how the candle really burns are the two most popular techniques for candle divination. You must observe the candle's burning pattern, including its height, flickering, and the presence of many flames, in order to make a prediction based on how it burns. Two flames could indicate assistance from the afterlife in achieving your objective. Even the hues of the flame may give you a clue as to how well your efforts are going. However, there is no agreement on what these indications signify. While some practitioners hold that a candle that burns tall and strongly indicates that one's request will be granted, others draw attention to the fact that the wick's length and quality, as well as an air vent, can affect how the candle burns. Prioritize your intention over the candle's burning process. You can always read the wax once it hardens, or pour the wax directly into cold water for it to harden and then interpret the symbols, much like you would with bone throwing, or scrying. Personally, I also like to pay attention to the smoke and interpret the way the smoke from the candle flows in order to interpret surrounding energies.

Spirit Work - Fire scrying is the most common way to communicate with spirits, and as it's the only method with candles I have experience with, that's what I will be discussing here. I encourage you to do your own research into spirit communication outside of my suggestion, because I'm sure there are plenty other methods out there. Again, there is no base consensus in a means to interpretation, as spirits and practitioners alike have different ways of communication. Just like with any other scrying, its imperative to stay connected to your personal energy while connecting with surrounding energy to properly interpret the signals you are receiving. Connecting with deities is also possible using this method of Candle Magic.

Rituals/Spellwork - In rituals and spells, candles are used to increase vibrations, represent specific elements and other important objects or creatures, use symbolism, and seal items like letters or spell bottles. Even candle spells can be created simply lighting a candle with intention. It is very common to carve, dress, and anoint candles in aid for ritual and spellwork as well. Fire being the main force driving the work, of course.

Worship - Candles are often used as offerings for various deities. Symbolism, color, and dressings can all play a part of this as well. They are also used as a beacon for an entity to guide you through your working.

Candle Correspondences

When undertaking serious candle work, choosing the right candle colors is crucial. Each hue has a unique meaning and possesses unique abilities. It's crucial to pick colors that align with your aims while working with candles in spells or rituals. Please remember that this is a very basic list and that the things you will read in your personal correspondence are far more significant than anything you will read here.

White - Attraction, Purification, Protection, Balance, Clarity, Grounding, Healing, Hope, Innocence, Optimism, Peace, Truth, Willpower

White can take the place of any other color when not available. Just a bit of visualization is required.

Black - Acceptance, Afterlife, Banishing, Binding, Determination, Endings, Justice, Loss, Release, Break, Security, Grief, Negativity, Patience, Persistence, Rebirth, Strength, Self Control

Red - Assertiveness, Courage, Creativity, Energy, Desire, Loyalty, Motivation, Power, Survival, Change

Yellow - Action, Communication, Learning, Finances, Business, Intellect, Inspiration, Knowledge, Wisdom, Stimulation

Pink - Acceptance, Affection, Beauty, Compassion, Healing, Family, Harmony, Kindness, Longevity, Nurturing, Partnership, Prosperity

Green - Abundance, Agriculture, Beauty, Creativity, Family, Fertility, Healing, Luck, Environment, Nurturing

Purple - Authority, Enlightenment, Spirituality, Emotions, Imagination, Influence, Truth, Wisdom, Overcoming Fear

Orange - Adaptive, Ambition, Confidence, Courage, Discipline, Energy, Freedom, Justice, Positivity, Pleasure, Stimulation, Travel

Blue - Honesty, Truth, Trust, Dreams, Sleep, Mental, Wisdom, Leadership, Fertility, Marriage, Healing, Study

Brown - Endurance, Animals, Balance, Courage, Grounding, Stability, Protection

Silver - Awareness, Intuition, Money, Purification, Potential, Stability, Success, Celestial

Gold - Abundance, Ambition, Money, Happiness, Power, Influence, Solar energy

Even if you aren't aware of it, the type of candle and the type of wax it is made of may have an impact on your craft. It can all come down to functionality or magical implications.

Taper Candles

Taper candles are tall, thin candles with a tapered top; they are often placed in vintage, smaller candle jars and are more ornamental and symbolic. Shorter taper candles are typically used to seal objects with wax. They can, however, be utilized for any task.

Pillar Candles

There are many different types of pillar candles, but these are the ones I see used almost exclusively. They differ from being short and fat to being tall and slim. They can be utilized for a variety of purposes, but I've found that rituals are where they're most useful.

Votive Candles

Votive candles are little and barely taper more at the base. They are frequently placed in glass candle holders and are used as offerings to deities. Given that their modest, tapering size is what makes them votives, their sizes rarely fluctuate. But they do come in a variety of colors. They are often white.

Tealights

Tealights are tiny, thin, and short candles. You can use them to make offerings, perform spells and rituals, decorate, or even keep wax warmers warm. I frequently observe this kind of candle being used, largely because they are the least expensive candles available.

Now, let's go over some of the different wax types.

Beeswax

It used to be difficult and dangerous to obtain beeswax, which added to the candle's mystique and spiritual power. Beeswax is a natural substance that burns more slowly, making it a premium item among contemporary candle spiritual practitioners; yet, because of its price, it may not be the best choice. Beeswax candles are available in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and hues and can be rolled, poured, or dipped. Longer ancestral rituals that demand higher vibrations and purpose work best with these candles.

Soy

People who use earth magic sometimes like soy candles since they are natural. Although they tend to burn for a shorter period of time than beeswax candles, they keep fragrances quite well. When dressed, they can also be extremely fragile and challenging to mold or carve. The majority of soy candles are already housed in glass. They are most effective when utilized in ancestral rituals for healing and rebirth.

Paraffin

Since it's a byproduct of the petroleum industry, many people consider it to be less natural than the available alternatives. The fact that it releases chemicals like toluene into the air makes it a poor choice for poorly ventilated areas. Other than providing the foundation for candles, I haven't discovered any sources that discuss the magickal powers of paraffin itself. I found a few for petroleum jelly, which is frequently used as a foundation for herbal salves, but they mainly praised how simple it was to use as an ointment. Even our non-human ancestors may have used petroleum, according to some sources, which makes it a solid foundation for ancestor magic.

[jurakan]

Fun Fact! Crosses!

I am not around, this is a queued Fun Fact! Don't send me requests! I won't see them!

Easter is coming up, so let’s talk about different kinds of crosses! You’ve probably seen most of these before, especially if you’re Catholic, but maybe you didn’t know the names!

Of course, most Christians are familiar with the Latin Cross:

That’s the classic one, of course.

The Greek Cross, with equal lengths on each bar:

Also a classic!

The Patriarchal Cross, which you see a lot in Orthodox churches:

The extra bar towards the top represents the ‘INRI’ sign Pilate posted on the Cross.

The Papal Cross:

I’m not actually sure what the deal with that one is.

The Chi Rho:

This takes the two Greek letters, ‘Chi’ and ‘Rho’ (first two letters of ‘Christos’ in Greek), and combines them.

The Jerusalem Cross, used in the Kingdom of Jerusalem in the Crusades:

I *believe* it represents how Jerusalem was believed to be the center of the world, and the crosses in the corners represent the four corners of the world? I think, anyhow.

The Tau Cross:

Also called Saint Anthony’s Cross, as it’s associated with Saint Anthony of Egypt. It’s also got Franciscan associations!

Cross of Saint James:

Big in Spain, obviously, where Saint James the Greater is quite popular. It’s the symbol of the Order of Santiago (Saint James).

Celtic Cross, which you see a lot in Irish stores as knick-knacks, though they’re also from Scotland and Wales:

Obviously modeled after those stone crosses you’ll see carved in the British Isles.

The Ankh, which Coptic Christians sort of grabbed from Egypt:

This was originally an Egyptian symbol for ‘life’, unrelated to the Cross as we know it in the original context.

The Maltese!

The symbol of the Knights of Saint John and the Order of Hospitallers! And obviously, the island of Malta.

And the Marian Crosses:

It combines the Latin Cross with the letter ‘M’, to emphasize how Mary was at the Crucifixion.

Hope this was something that you didn’t know!

[heterotopian]

The Tale of Two Cities according to Stephi and Heiko - Part 466

Dear readers, Stephi and I wish you a Happy Easter and hope you have a great time with family and friends. In a more and more secular world Easter no longer has much meaning. When it comes to the church it is more about the pope and if he is able to take part in the festivities.

And if you look at the post this year and the latter years, you will see that we probably never posted a picture of a church but mostly referred to the secular traditions, often the Easter bunny.

And that’s what we stuck with again this year. The first picture shows some chocolate bunnies that Stephi is probably hiding or giving away for her family. We didn’t really talk about that. But who knows the tradition of hiding eggs and sweets that the children have to search. I read two theories about the search for Easter eggs. One said that it is a sign for happiness, new life and resurrection. Another said that catholic priests gave away eggs and Protestants hid then and told their kids that this was the doing of a bunny. I did not verify any of these stories.

The second picture form Cologne shows the material side of Easter with them hugs bunnies in a department store. I had to go there more often as my daughter always wanted to see them huge bunnies. I tell you, these bunnies are really huge. Also, the chocolate is nor bad at all.

How you you people celebrate Easter, if at all. I will have been at my in-laws on the first day and then just relax with good food on day two. It almost feels like Christmas without the big pomp.