| 
|
Page: Profile: Wren's Nest News Local
| Total Views: 4,941,744
|
Article: 18451
[History]
Date Posted:
8/29/2007
4:28:03 pm EDT
Wvox Stats
Views: 6,344
RSS: 13,316
Comments: 17
|
Mayor Unearths Two Churches' Hidden Pasts
Author: Karen E. Bowes Source: Holmdel Independent (NJ)
Title: MAYOR UNEARTHS TWO CHURCHES' HIDDEN PASTS
Christians go to church. Mayor Gerard Scharfenberger goes under them.
He finds things one might not expect, a perfectly good dead cat, for instance, a 17thcentury witch's caldron, bullets and whiskey bottles - lots and lots of whiskey bottles.
In the name of scholarly pursuit, the archaeologist/ mayor recently excavated two area churches with roots in the 1660s: the Old First Church at 69 Kings Highway and the Holmdel Community United Church of Christ, 40 Main St.
On Aug. 22, Scharfenberger, an adjunct professor at Monmouth University and senior archaeologist for Richard Grubb and Associates, Cranbury, appeared at Croydon Hall to present a slideshow highlighting some of his more unusual finds. The dead cat, for example, was found with a gunshot wound to the eye.
"What could possibly have caused someone to get so angry they'd want to shoot this cat?" Scharfenberger asked the large crowd of senior citizens.
The answer, it turns out, is witches.
| Options: [Read Full Story] [Comments Locked]
[Email to a Friend]
|
|
Community Thoughts: There are 17 comments posted | Reverse Sort |
| 1787? | Aug 31st. at 1:20:48 am EDT
|
Joseph (Byram, New Jersey) - Email Me
I was struck by the notion that there was a witch hanging in New Jersey in 1787. I certainly had no idea anything like that happened so late. Anybody have any more information on that particular event? A quick Google search proved fruitless.
|
| That Was Then... | Aug 30th. at 7:28:02 pm EDT
|
Fraoch (Shelby, North Carolina) - Email Me
There are several different ways of dating archeological finds. One of which is by notating the depth of the find within the ground, so finding artifacts underneath the floorboars of an old church built in the seventeenth century is pretty telling of the age. Speaking of the seventeenth century, I highly doubt, as someone else was pointing out, that what these folks were doing smacked of ancient magical rites nor anything that we may have today, as we've made this stuff up as we've gone along. (Well, unless you're looking at Agrippa, Dee, people like that) . As a matter of fact, a lot of where we pull our sources is from these customs that have been passed down from the country folk of the Middle Ages and not from ancient people. The reason being is because we have no tangible clue as to what they did, as far as anyone outside of Greece and southern Italy. (Note that I'm not invalidating anything except for the first several comments judging seventeenth century folk magic/sympathetic magic by Llewelyn Publications version 2.0) .
[I just want to point this out] ...People it's quite likely that did not sacrifice others to the Morrighan (add a little backslash over the 'o;' it's called a "fada") . As a matter of fact, I really don't understand why, in the movement to stop the demonization of the Goddess, people still perpetuate the demonization of Her despite the academic evidence to the contrary.
|
| Sounds Like Folk Magic | Aug 30th. at 3:09:32 pm EDT
|
Rubyglare (Sacramento, California) - Email Me
also known as witchcraft, to me; yes it's supposed to keep out "spiritual venom"-burying cats & cache pots/cauldrons beneath the floors, this practice is nowhere mentioned in the Bible so people would consider this witchcraft if in a hostile mood. The article didn't mention witches, except to call the pots "witches' cauldrons".
|
| Reading Comprehension | Aug 30th. at 2:22:21 pm EDT
|
Finn (San Marcos, Texas) - Email Me
I often wonder if everyone reads the articles before posting comments. Clearly some do not, or reading comprehension skills are simply not being taught in schools anymore. There is nothing in this article which is insulting or inflammatory. Moreover, there is nothing in this article which anyone should use as a launching pad against Christians or their faith. It is merely an interesting story about an Archeologist who has excavated some old churches.
Anyone who has looked into the matter will discover that there are all manner of odd rituals which get performed when someone builds a foundation. These practices, of a wide variety, continue to this very day. It was indeed a common practice at one point to ward a building against evil spirits and/or witches and/or the devil by killing an effigy and mixing it into the structure. Why this would surprise anyone is beyond me.
Sacrifice comes in a wide variety of formats. Ancient Pagans and modern ones (myself among them) practiced and practice it today.
|
| So They Found A Dead Cat... | Aug 30th. at 1:43:19 pm EDT
|
bigcat (peoria, Illinois) - Email Me
And assumed witches were afoot?
Sounds like they dug up the remnants of a wild party to me- or maybe a whiskey runner's stash.
As for the poor cat, it was probably at the wrong place at the wrong time and ended up as a drunken sharpshooter's target. The one thing people tend to forget about the past-is that a lot of behavior we don't expect- has a habit of turning up in unexpected places.
|
| Be Realistic | Aug 30th. at 11:03:03 am EDT
|
Corvis (Greenbelt, Maryland) - Email Me
Firstly, how good an architect this guy is, I don't know. But he is basing his opinions on previously known customs. He says this. Cats buried under a church, a caldron found under the church, as apposed to say, a hearth or garbage pit, was condusive to already known traditions that dealt with witchcraft. And finding whisky bottles or morphine based cough syryp -- so what -- how does that make them hypocrites? Where does it say that Christians can't drink? Morphine wasn't an illegal drug then. You have to look at it from the paradigm of the people of those times. As for witchcraft, believe it or not, there were people threatening to use witchcraft against other people -- to ruin their crops or lame their horses or whatever. And the people at that time didn't have Gerald Gardner to tell them the 'truth' about "the old religion" (said facetiously) . And pagans of whatever stripe did sacrifice, did do things we wouldn't approve of today, hey just look at Aztec art or the Gunndstrop Cauldron. Stop judging these people, or what went on, by our standards.
|
| Well, | Aug 29th. at 11:49:33 pm EDT
|
Azuris-Raen (Austin, Texas) - Email Me
if i'm correct, during thoes times killing of cats esspecially black cats was seen as to "weaken" witches and/or coax them out of hiding. Guns were available at that time.
The article said that he is an archeologist, um... don't they carbon14 the evidence for age to place it in history, oddly that important piece is missing; giving a blow to this article's credibility. Besides that there is no other evidence on it being evidence connecting to witches.
Brighest Blessings and May the Light Protect Thee! ^_^
Dax-raen
|
| *laughs* | Aug 29th. at 10:29:11 pm EDT
|
Draken (Bronx, New York) - Email Me - Web
Rob graves much, Mr. Mayor?
|
| Is There A Sign On The Cauldron? | Aug 29th. at 8:08:48 pm EDT
|
Shadowbear (Hillsboro, Oregon) - Email Me
In what way to you tell a cooking cauldron from a witch's cauldron without a sign? What magical rite says shoot a cat through the eye?
There is a dead cat, shot - a cooking pot - whiskey bottles and bottles of serious drugs for children and they come up with witches? Give me a break, these dots do not connect to form a witch.
|
| Actually.......... | Aug 29th. at 6:29:17 pm EDT
|
Jedi Gordy (Edinboro, Pennsylvania) - Email Me
Hindus used to sacrifice people to Kali after a great war. Celts to Morgain, Norse to Freya, Greeks to Ares, etc, etc. We also must not forget that the Aztecs, Toltecs, Incas, Mayas, and Polonysians all sacrificed people, as did the Jews, the Muslims and the Christians. Every culture has had human and animal sacrifice of one kind or another, wether it be "in the name of god" or as a thanks for victory in war, or even to ensure the rains. There has always been sacrifice, and there will always BE a "sacrificial lamb" of some sort or another. To say Paganism has always been devoid of this fact of life and history is fooling yourself. I would guess that maybe this was a black cat, hunting mice and rats when it was killed by the people to "rid themselves of the devil" so long, long ago. But come on, we all know that sacrifices went on in the pre-christian cultures of Eurasia.
|
| BOY O BOY.... | Aug 29th. at 5:34:55 pm EDT
|
Whitewolf (Schenectady, New York) - Email Me
and they talk about US???? For some reason this doesn't surprise me in the least....
HYPOCRITES....
Love to all
|
Disclaimer: The Witches' Voice inc does not verify the accuracy of the details stated in this listing, nor do we vouch for the value of the goods or services presented here... As with all contacts and financial dealings in cyberspace, we encourage you to use caution and wisdom in your dealings with strangers.
Political Statements: Any and all personal political opinions expressed in the public listing sections (including, but not restricted to, personals, events, groups, shops, Wren's Nest, etc.) are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinion of The Witches' Voice, Inc. TWV is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization.
|
State/Country flags created by 3dflags.com and are used with permission
Web Site Content (including: text - graphics - html - look & feel)
Copyright 1997-2009 The Witches' Voice Inc. All rights reserved
Note: Authors & Artists retain the copyright for their work(s) on this website.
Unauthorized reproduction without prior permission is a violation of copyright laws.
Website structure, evolution and php coding by Fritz Jung on a Macintosh G5.
Any and all personal political opinions expressed in the public listing sections (including, but not restricted to, personals, events, groups, shops, Wren’s Nest, etc.) are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinion of The Witches’ Voice, Inc. TWV is a nonprofit, nonpartisan educational organization.
Sponsorship: Visit the Witches' Voice Sponsor Page for info on how you
can help support this Community Resource. Donations ARE Tax Deductible.
The Witches' Voice carries a 501(c)(3) certificate and a Federal Tax ID.
Mail Us: The Witches' Voice Inc., P.O. Box 341018, Tampa, Florida 33694-1018 U.S.A.
| |
