Project X13

Well, I’m still wading through my finals, but I had time today while taking a little break from translating to put together the following –albeit short---list of interesting links to share. So check it out, folks:

Some amazing news from Norway: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/324906

An excellent document addressing privilege and racism. As far as I’m concerned, every Heathen ought to read this. We need to be examining this within our own communities because it’s there, more than I ever wanted to admit: http://corr.peacefuluprising.org/sites/default/files/attachments/2012-02/unpacking_the_invisible_knapsack.pdf

Great post, part of the Pagan Blog Project, by Maris Pai, that touches on the power of one’s land in shaping our Pagan consciousness: http://marispai.huginnpress.com/2012/05/08/i-is-for-ireland/

Finally, while I don’t usually do ‘cute,’ this is just too delightful not to share: http://www.g33kwatch.com/movies/story-of-a-five-year-old-avenger-meeting-the-avengers/?fb_ref=.T7HZnCfMZPs.like&fb_source=home_multiline

This week's post (and people, let me tell you, "j" is a hard letter to work with!) is about Flavius Claudius Julianus Augustus, known as Julian the Apostate to Christians, and Julian the Martyr to many of us Pagans. Julian lived in the middle of the fourth century C.E., dying in 363 CE and during his all too brief reign, he tried fervently to drive back the insidious spread of Christianity and restore Paganism (albeit is more a pantheistic than purely polytheistic flavor of Paganism) as the major religion of the Empire. For this reason, he is counted amongst the sancti by many polytheists today.  


I think that Julian is a tremendously important figure, and not just historically. It's important for contemporary Pagans and polytheists to know that Paganism did not just disappear. Ancient Pagans did not go gently into the dark night of conversion. Christianity was not universally embraced without question. There was an ongoing, generations long battle and the outcome and conclusion were not, as many Christians would have us believe, fore-ordained. The story of the spread of monotheism, in this case Christianity is one of indoctrination, ideological bullying, fanaticism, and bloodshed. There were, however, those who opposed it and there were those who opposed it at every level of society, from the more than 2500 men and women of the Saxons, hundreds of years after Julian, who laid down their lives rather than covert under Charlemagne to philosophers, senators, peasants, people of every walk of society all the way up to an emperor. There was resistance. As the cliche goes, history is written by the victor, and nowhere is that more fully true than in the story of Christianity's victory over ancient Paganism. We are not taught about that resistance ever. Christianity is presented as a natural and moreover a positive evolution in the nature of things when it was nothing of the sort. That's important to remember as we continue that resistance and continue the struggle to revive and restore our ancestral ways. But back to Julian. 


It's actually something of a miracle that Julian survived to take the throne at all. He was the nephew of Constantine, the first Christian emperor, and after the death of Constantine, his successor, Constantius II massacred Julian's family to secure his own succession to the throne. To some degree this was the way of Roman politics, almost from the inception of the imperial system, but it cannot have been any less devastating to those who survived, like Julian. Julian was a child at the time of his parents' massacre and by some grace was left alive, though isolated and exiled from the centers of power. He was raised by his grandmother in Bithynia (ironically --to me at least--we have surviving letters of Pliny the younger, discussing the "christian problem" in Bitynia and asking the advice of Emperior Trajan. Christians were considered impious, possibly atheistic, and definitely offensive to public morals) and educated as a Christian. 


While raised Christian, Julian rejected Christianity in his youth. Still, his work shows quite a thorough knowledge of the Bible and other extant Christian texts - not surprising since one of his primary teachers was the Bishop of Nicodemia, Eusebius. His rejection of Christianity was not the result of lack of knowledge of the new religion, but of quite a deep familiarity with it. He was perfectly placed to reject monotheism from a position of insight and understanding. Any contemporary Pagan reading this has, to greater or lesser degree, made that self same journey. Waking up and casting off those ideological chains…chains whose fetters run deep in our minds, in our hearts, in our spirits, is no small thing. Julian did it when it was far more potentially fatal a decision, and we did it too. That's something to recognize and in which to take heart. (I know when I first read about him, when I had only just become Pagan, I was stunned that as late as the fourth century, someone in power was trying hard to restore Pagan ways. It had quite an impact on me and probably contributed to my going into Classics).


Eventually Julian's exile was ended. He gained military experience in Gaul, in good Roman custom harassing some of the Germanic tribes there. Not unexpectedly, the relationship between Julian and Constantius II was apparently strained almost to the point of Civil War but before he died, the latter recognized Julian as his rightful heir and Julian became Emperor in 361 C.E. (I am of course, jumping over a significant period of Julian's early life where he became more deeply entrenched in Paganism, gained significant experience as a military leader, and learned how to exercise political power. I've provided a list of sources at the end of this article for those who want read more in depth material on him). 


Julian was a very hands on leader, concerned about corruption in the imperial court and he made many administrative changes during the first part of his reign. The most controversial (and to polytheists the most beloved) was his attempt to halt the spread and political influence of Christianity and return Paganism to a place of religious and civil prominence in the Empire.(2) As an interesting aside, we do have two religious works written by Julian: a panegyric to the God Helios, and likewise a panegyric to the Mother of the Gods. Amongst his other surviving works, we also have 'Against the Galileans,' his polemic against Christianity. They're worth reading, though they should not be taken as theological works--Julian was not a theologian--but rather ought to be seen as the work of a high ranking, well educated Roman Pagan working in a social and political environment very, very hostile to Paganism in every way. 


While very Neoplatonic in his approach to Paganism, his reputation as it has come down to us point to his having been a very devout Pagan. That his Paganism wasn't clean and betrayed some monotheistic influence was recognized by Julian himself who (from his extant writings) was well aware that his own mind was tainted and poisoned by his Christian upbringing. This is something to remember: all of us, having been raised in a very Christian influenced society need to be aware of the impact of that filter, that lens, that upbringing on our minds. We were all brainwashed and half the battle of growing in devotion to the Gods is ridding oneself of that mental and spiritual sickness of monotheism and its influences. It's insidious too.(1) Julian recognized this from the beginning and commented upon it in his writings. 


As to his religious reforms, Julian's primary aim was to restore Paganism and to force Christians out of any positions of power or governance within the Roman state. Given the results of close to two thousand years of Christian dominance, we might call his attempts prescient. Here are some of the steps that Julian took after coming to power: 


* He restored Pagan temples

* He repealed state funding for Christian bishops and other Christian clergy; in fact, he legislated heavily against Christians in general and Christian authorities in particular.

*He removed bishops and other Christian leaders from positions of legal, judicial, and forensic authority. 

*Political favors or exemptions that had been awarded to Christians he summarily reversed. 

*In 362 C.E. he did the thing no monotheist would ever do: he issued an edict guaranteeing freedom of religion. 

(note, he didn't attempt to destroy Christianity, only to limit its influence within institutions of power. Persecuting Christians only made them stronger, so he took the wise position of tolerance instead, in a way guaranteed to undermine their resistance. This was an important step toward guaranteeing that Pagans would no longer be persecuted for their beliefs, though this was repealed after Julian's death by his successor).

*He attempted to create/consolidate Paganisms into a type of hierarchical "Church" that could actively rival and block the Christian Church. (While i don't agree with this necessarily, i can see why it seemed the right course of action given the growing power of the Christian church in the 4th century. He wanted to create an authoritative body that could block, point and counterpoint, the growing influence of the Christian church).

*He removed Christian teachers from public schools--particularly in the teaching of rhetoric, so necessary for political participation in Roman life. (This was a particular brilliant move as it not only caused severe financial damage to Christians but limited the options of those educated under Christian teachers for any type of civil or public employment). 

*He also mandated the restitution of property and wealth confiscated from Pagan temples.

*He encouraged the return of heretical Christian leaders perhaps in an attempt to foster schisms within the growing Church. 

*He did his best to clean up what was then a fragmented and disenfranchised Pagan clergy, advocating for a strict code of behavior and also advocating programs of charity to benefit the people (one of the ways in which Christians had won converts).


Julian died during a campaign against the Persians (an ongoing Roman obsession it seems) in 363 C.E. courtesy of a spear to the gut. There was and is some speculation that he was assassinated by a Christian soldier obviously doing his best to emulate Christ (yes, I'm being sarcastic). 


Some might say Julian was fighting a losing battle and perhaps, in his own time that was true (many of us today lament, deeply lament his ill-chosen decision to fight the Persians. He he lived longer, who knows what he might have accomplished and how our world would be different as a result) but his story survives as an inspiration to those of us engaged in the exact same battle today. Moreover, as one of the sancti, as one of our honored forebears, we can call upon him in ancestral veneration for help, assistance, and guidance. I recommend laying out offerings to him, particularly in June, the month of his death. 


Personally, I would love to see something of what I like to call the "Julian reforms" put into practice, limiting the effects and influence of monotheists in government. Do I think it's going to happen? No, not in our country or lifetime, but it's a dearly held dream of mine. Note the things Julian did not do. He did not advocate tearing down or otherwise desecrating Churches. He did not advocate randomly confiscating Christian property. He did not advocate hauling their clergy out into the streets and killing them…all of which Christians quite happily did up to the modern day and in some places continue to do, particularly if one counts the effects on the Americas of the Doctrine of Discovery. I think it's high time for a few "Julian reforms" personally, high time indeed. 



Notes


1. the antidote to the virus starts with the ancestors,with honoring them and allowing them to begin guiding the process of removing the pollution, of un-brainwashing, of bringing clarity and connection. 

2. There's a 'Julian Society' http://www.juliansociety.org/ dedicated to Julian's ideal of restoring ancient Paganisms to world prominence. This just tickles me pink. I may have to join. 


For more information on Julian see: 

http://www.roman-emperors.org/julian.htm

http://www.roman-empire.net/collapse/julian.html

http://orthodoxwiki.org/Julian_the_Apostate (always interesting to read about him from the enemy's perspective)

http://www.heritage-history.com/www/heritage.php?Dir=characters&FileName=julian1.php

http://archive.org/details/julianphilosophe00gard

"Julian the Apostate" by G. Bowersock

"The Last Pagan" by Adrian Murdoch

"Julian's Gods" by R. Smith


There's also an interesting, and very well researched novel about Julian. I haven't read it in over fifteen years, but I recall enjoying it greatly when I did: 

"Julian: A Novel" by Gore Vidal

Well, for those who asked (as several of you did), here is more or less what I said in my opening prayer at the UN Conference on Women and Indigeny today. This conference was sponsored by a number of organizations, including the Grey Panthers. I also helped to sponsor it. Anyway, here is my prayer. I started out pretty mellow, but as i began to speak, the ancestors grabbed me by the back of the neck--I felt like they grabbed my spine--and poured their presence through me. 


There was an ancestor altar in front of everyone and I stood in front of that to present. 


Opening Ancestor Prayer

Let us begin our work today by calling upon our ancestors. 


Let us call upon the Algonquin, the Wappingers Confederacy and all other Native peoples who walked this land and whom this land remembers. 


Let us begin by calling upon the mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers of our lines, all the way back to the time our respective peoples began. 


Let us begin by reaching into the past, to the strength and wisdom of our forebears, for guidance as we seek to transform our present. 


I call now to our collective ancestors, women and men who laid down their lives, who faced conquest, struggle, potential obliteration , who stood strong and proud so that each of their descendants might have a chance at survival, at life, at continuance. I call to those men and women whose joys and sacrifices, struggles, and successes culminated in each one of us sitting here today. Hear us oh, honored dead. 


Those of you who came before us, living lives rooted in your own ancestral ways, be with us here today.  Be with us as we come together in dialogue and peace. Inspire us that from here, buoyed by the strength of our collective passion, our collective words, our collective insights, we might go forth and transform our oh so damaged world. Root us, oh ancestors, in our respective indigeny. Root us in the knowledge that indigeny is about celebrating the dignity of every living being on the planet; indigeny is about recognizing that we are indisputably connected to the earth, the land, and most of all to each other. Oh ancestors let our work today honor that awareness with grace. 


Oh our mothers, our fathers, our foremothers, our forefathers all the way back to the time of the beginning, are calling us to action. I know you all hear that call. May our warrior ancestors, who never, EVER went gently into the good night of conquest, who fought and laid down their lives sometimes en masse for the survival of their traditions, our traditions, let us call upon them now. Defiant Ones, Proud and enduring ones, men and women both. Give us the strength to reject that which would poison and corrupt our connections to our ancestors, our Holy powers, the land upon which we live, and each other. Give us the wisdom to know know in our bones that sustainability does not come from disconnected governments and avaricious corporations but from the belly of our ancestors and the traditions they called their own, traditions that are our birthright, our inheritance. 


Oh Ancestors, give us the courage to confront privilege—our own most of all—to actively engage with ideas and concepts that may be painful, to  engage with mindfulness, respect, and authenticity. 


Most of all, let us never give up, never surrender, never step back from this fight; no matter what hostility or pressure we might face. We too are warriors in a struggle that has spanned generations. Stand with us, oh our beloved dead. Grant us a measure of your strength. We carry the medicine of our ancestors.  Oh Ancestors, hear our vow: no one here will be legislated, educated, starved, murdered, shamed out of existence. We will not allow our traditions—whatever those ancestral traditions might be for here we sit, from all corners of the globe united by a common purpose—to be forgotten. We will not allow the land that cradles the bones of our foremothers and forefathers to be devastated. Many things can be lost or taken by the rushing press of dubious progress, or through the violent devastation of conquest but indigeny is not one of them. It flourishes in each one of us. It is in the soil upon which we walk. It is hidden in our skin and blood and bones, in the connection from parent to child to grandchild and beyond. Oh our mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers, help us stay consciously rooted in that knowledge. 


May we hold strong. May our ancestors sustain us. 

It will take both sides, living and dead, to right the balance of this world. 


May we hold strong and never bow our heads in fear. 


We are each our ancestral lines walking. The time is now and I call upon our ancestors: give us ears to hear and eyes to see and the courage to go fearlessly wherever we must go, to do whatever we must do, to protect and heal our broken world. 


With the blessing of the ancestors—all of our collective and honored dead—may we be given strength and may we always remember: we do not do this work alone. We are our ancestral lines walking. We come with nations of our ancestors at our back. May they be honored. May they be hailed. May they be remembered. May they inspire us. 



(that's pretty much 98% of the text. As always, the ancestors did change it a bit when I went to speak, but everything here was spoken. All that is omitted is one or two extemporaneous calls uttered in the moment).