Yes, this is going to be one of those kinds of posts and I hope a really good long one. This month I finally got the book 'Hellenic Polytheism: Household Worship' from the group called Labrys. They were founded in 2008, according to Wikipedia. They were finally able to get their book out in the international market, which is great for those that don't live in Greece and don't speak or read Greek. I've done two video's about this book, basically cutting it down into sections and I do intend to do another video on Monday.
One of the most important part of this book is the whole of the book. A book of rituals and information based on how a group in the homeland of Greece worships the gods even though the Church hates their guts and wants them to die a very quick death. While a couple parts may not go well with those that either don't have a ton of money for statues, or might disagree with things like offering and stuff, I really find this book to be interesting and vital.
Most of the stuff that we have in the States that even mentions the gods usually is bound in a Wiccan cover and has a whole bunch of blessed be and merry meet's. I've done the Sunday ritual twice already and I intend to do it again tomorrow. I feel a connection to that place, with this book, then I do working out of a book that might be written by a Wiccan author. The huge problem is that there aren't a lot of books out there that have rituals that are just directed to Hellenists and we have to understand that this is how 'they' do things over there.
One problem that came up was with the subject of images. One Facebook gal said that the book stated that only statues can be given devotion and not images that you would most likely print off the internet. I take that as a suggestion, as the book says that it is. It doesn't mean that they don't understand that you don't have money to buy statues, but they recommend that you have statues or something that have some devotional meaning. I, for one, don't have a ton of money and so I have to buy my statues every other month; instead of monthly.
These heating months really hurt!
I really enjoyed the Preface to the book, which explained very beautifully what the book was about and what they are hoping to accomplish by having this book in English. I know the translation must of been hard, as their use to writing in Greek. They talked about each god, gave a wonderful picture of that god, or goddess, and then talked about things like what kind of incense that is burned, tokens, what you offer them, everything that would be easy for someone that's either new to the faith or someone that wants to burn what is believed to be historically accurate.
The only part that I can't do is the incense. I have to use what I have available due to the fact that I don't have any money and it's my mother that helps with buying things. The red wine is something that I substitute for grape juice, though I try and make it red grape juice instead of white. I loved how they explained the position of the hands during worship, which has helped me better in honoring them. They also talked about what can make you impure and what you have to do, within a modern context, to balance yourself out.
One thing that I will say in facing death. It does make you feel unclean both physically and spiritually. They have some rituals for burial, marriage, and naming. So, even though some of the words are hard to pronounce, I believe this to be a good book for anyone that's just starting and anyone that wants to expand on their practice. There are a couple of things that I might not agree with, but I do agree most of the book. I'm glad they brought it out and I'm looking forward to their next volume.
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