Christian Symbols, Ancient Roots

CONTENT

1. Introduction
The ancient roots of Christian symbols 11
Symbols in worship
Symbol for ancient peoples
Symbol and emotion
Symbols become fossilised
An earlier
Broader vision
Sacraments are symbols
Archetypes
Hero’s Journey
Stone statues
Truth and myth
Creation myths
Rituals enact our story
Natural symbols
The roots of Christian symbols

2. Corn the bread of life 22
Sharing divine life
The start of corn-growing
Water germinates the seed
Corn’s cycle of growth
The world harvest
Lord of the harvest
The last sheaf
Corn dollies: Symbols of life
Cornucopia
The horn of plenty
Harvest celebrations
Threshing and winnowing
Jesus as bread of life

3. Water and blood; The ark of safety
Rain unites earth heaven
The flood which renews
The moon boat: an ark of safety
The moon goddess is Christianised
Springs of life
Healing eaters
Baptism
The river Jordan
Blood, the essence of life
The sacrificial lamb
Jesus
The Lamb of God
Blood rituals
The blood of Jesus

4. The snake in Paradise Lost and Regained
Serpent’s power
The snake coiled round the tree of life
The healing serpent
Satan
The evil serpent
Dragons
The ambivalent power of animals
Animal rituals
In paradise
Animals live at peace
The kingdom of heaven

5. The tree of life and the tree of the cross
The world-Axis tree
The fruitful tree
People as trees
The vine of god
The tree of the cross
The Easter candle
The maypole
The blossoming almond
Holly
Ivy and mistletoe
The Yule log

6. Sun and moon; Fire and light
Jesus, the light of the world
Christ, the rising sun
Sunday
Easter night
Christmas
Mary
The moon
The church as the moon
Sacred fire
The hearth of Vesta
The Easter fire
Celtic prayers of fire and light

7. Symbols of Jesus and Mary in Art 89
Male and female
Mary
Queen of heaven and earth 90
The earth mother
The pregnancy of Mary
The birth of Jesus
The mass

8. Priest and shaman: Holy leaders
The holy leader: A symbol of god
Shaman’s tasks
Spirit ladder
Prophetic inspiration
Spiritual power-conflicts
Sharing spiritual power
The call to leadership
Call through
Affliction
Inherited leadership
Handing on holiness
Called from birth
Jeremiah’s struggle
Wounded healer
The healing group
Spiritual marriage
Trance

9. Chant and Incantation: Scared song
Chant: A two-way symbol
The music of creation
Earliest chants
Healing chants
Chants of destruction
Shamans receive songs
Joyful healing songs
Songs are powerful thoughts
David’s chants
A hermit’s song
The creative word
Chant for a lame person
Celtic binding chants
The medieval modes
The modes break down
Song in the reformed churches

10. The dance of heaven and earth
The dance of creation
Earthly dance
King David’s dance
Seizure and ecstasy
Animal rituals
Processional dance
Dance as a sacrament
Human acts are holy acts
Death rituals
Wedding and war dances
Birth into heavenly life
The body as a sacred vessel
Sacred space
Journey thought life’s maze
The dance of Jesus
Carols
The heavenly circle dance
Symbol and integration
Worship
Violence and communication
Our earliest liturgy: A thank you
Appendix
Bibliography
Index