Yet the fact that these questions are coming to me shows that – at least in part – we expect our priests to have some expertise with contemplative practices. Folklore ( Proto-Germanic folklore, Anglo-Saxon mythology, Continental Germanic mythology, Norse mythology) Also, I use “priest” as inclusive of all genders, as do most polytheists. The work is mostly gender-irrelevant.

A Practical Guide to Pagan Priesthood - Google Books

The Anglo-Saxons, like other Germanic peoples, adapted the week-day names introduced by their interaction with the Roman Empire but glossed their indigenous gods over the Roman deities (with the exception of Saturday) in a process known as Interpretatio germanica:Do the writing skills of a bard help them in composing rituals? Yes – much of ritual is storytelling, and the skills are transferrable from one role to the other. 14. Magician In pre-Christian Anglo-Saxon England, legends and other stories were transmitted orally instead of being written down; it is for this reason that very few survive today. [130] Buddhists don’t use the same structure of religious specialists as Christians. Catholics don’t use the same as Protestants, and Baptists don’t use the same as Lutherans. Our many Pagan traditions are no different.

What’s a Pagan Priest? | John Beckett - Patheos So What’s a Pagan Priest? | John Beckett - Patheos

In Sumerian epic texts such as " Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta", nu-gig were priestesses in temples dedicated to Inanna and may be a reference to the goddess herself. [6]Far fewer textual records discuss Anglo-Saxon paganism than the pre-Christian belief systems found in nearby Ireland, Francia, or Scandinavia. [22] There is no neat, formalised account of Anglo-Saxon pagan beliefs as there is for instance for Classical mythology and Norse mythology. [23] Although many scholars have used Norse mythology as a guide to understanding the beliefs of pre-Christian Anglo-Saxon England, caution has been expressed as to the utility of this approach. [24] Stenton assumes that the connection between Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian paganism occurred "in a past which was already remote" at the time of the Anglo-Saxon migration to Britain, [25] and claims that there was clear diversity among the pre-Christian belief systems of Scandinavia itself, further complicating the use of Scandinavian material to understand that of England. [26] Conversely, the historian Brian Branston argued for the use of Old Norse sources to better understand Anglo-Saxon pagan beliefs, recognising mythological commonalities between the two rooted in their common ancestry. [27] Blair, John (1995). "Anglo-Saxon Pagan Shrines and their Prototypes". Anglo-Saxon Studies in Archaeology and History. 8: 1–28. Do you know anybody who’s an expert at all these things… other than Lugh Samildánach, that is? I’m certainly not.