Sympathy for the devil

[Whaleboy]

The Romans weren't exactly adversed to the concept of ritualised bloodshed for the masses or the state. Nothing changes

[GePap]

But sacrifice is so unsporting- where is the raw excitment! Unless you did it Aztec style, and as far as I can tell, the Druids were not big on spectacular drama.

[Sava]

this thread looked dumb, but Speer's rants made it worth reading.

[Whaleboy]

Speer makes Apolyton worth reading...

[Sava]

Originally posted by Whaleboy
Speer makes Apolyton worth reading...

[Elok]

Well, the Romans had no problem with bloodshed, but the gladiators and "decimation"-one tenth of the population getting killed off to encourage the rest to behave-was regulated butchery. Random people getting whacked by independent groups is against the best interests of any state.

[Sava]

Random people getting whacked by independent groups is against the best interests of any state.

It worked for the Romans, considering they dominated the world for the better part of over a thousand years.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by Sava
It worked for the Romans, considering they dominated the world for the better part of over a thousand years.

World?

[Dr Strangelove]

Originally posted by Sava
It worked for the Romans, considering they dominated the world for the better part of over a thousand years.

Prior to the conversion of the Roman republic into an empire gladiator sports were actually not that frequent. They could only be held after the death of a prominent public figure. It was Julius Caesar who came up with the idea that games could be held to commerate the historical death of a prominent Roman, thus opening the way for games anytime the emporer durn well pleased. The original games weren't that bloody, in most cases gladiators were spared if they had given a decent performance. Of course, there are no statistics on the number who died of wounds after a fight. The emporers introduced lavish spectacles, which were the real blood festivals of the games.

The power of Rome was definitely on the wain by 400 AD. The date of Rome's ascendence to world power can be debated. I would choose somewhere around 50 BC, about the time when Gaul and Egypt were incorporated into the empire. Someone might argue for an earlier date, after all even by 100 BC the empire already included Italy, Greece, Iberia, Illyria, and much of North Africa. By 50 BC however the empire had grown to completely encircle the Mediterranean Sea.

[Namaste]

From what I understand, LaVeyan Satanism is basically about the complete absence of any God altogether and uses Satan as essentially a symbol for freedom. The "religion" is generally anti-spiritual and entirely centered on the physical world and an embrace of it. Ayn Rand (yep, that goofball again) was a major influence on LaVey when he wrote the Satanic Bible.

The Yezidi of Kurdistan on the other hand, believe in a chief angel called Melek Taus (The Peacock Angel) which corresponds to the Judeo-Christian satan, but it's not quite the same thing. Melek Taus is seen as the supreme power on Earth and the creator of the material world.

As for Wicca, I actually had a discussion like this with one of my friends. Wicca really cannot claim any serious continuity to druidic practices. I forgot exactly what she told me that day, but basically wicca utilized essentially only the scraps of known pagan beliefs and the gaps were filled in with quite a bit of imagination in the 1950's. That doesn't make it a false religion though, so if you find spiritual fulfillment in it, then by all means go with it.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Sava
this thread looked dumb, but Speer's rants made it worth reading.

Speer's rants are worth something?

[Verres]

Originally posted by Whaleboy
The Romans liked their blood. Druidism was too close to monotheism for the Romans to be able to cope with. Thus they destroyed it.

What do the druids have to do with the devil?? For a start, they were pre-Christian. Very keen on reincarnation and oak trees....but that doesnt really seem particularly satanic to me

[Whaleboy]

What do the druids have to do with the devil?? For a start, they were pre-Christian. Very keen on reincarnation and oak trees....but that doesnt really seem particularly satanic to me

I think I was trying to say that the fact that a culture was particularly bloody may not have deterred the Romans because of their violent history and practice. I'm going out on a limb there though.

[Al B. Sure!]

If God is omnipotent, what is Satan? How can this implacable enemy of God exist?

easy... God allows Satan to exist to make things more interesting...

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Ah. So he's a sadist.