Setting the record straight on Druids & Celtic spirituality

I'm just reading a small book "Celt, Druid And Culdee" by Isabel Hill Elder and learning a lot!

I bought it for £4 but I find you can get all the text here.

So what's the crux of it and what have you learnt?

Ancient British spirituality was a mix of old testament and paganism ...

“ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images" (Amos 5:25)

Chiun was the moon goddess, called the queen of heaven and origin of the word "queen".
The famous British King Cunobeline (died 40AD) combines the worship of both Chiun and Bel.
Moloch is seen in place-names: Melksham (Wiltshire), Melchbourne (Beds.), Melcombe (Dorset)

Aven was another of the deities of the Phoenicians, and temples to this god were called Beth-Aven ('house of Aven.')

"…come not ye unto Gilgal, neither go ye up to Bethaven, nor swear, the Lord liveth. For Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer…Ephraim is joined to idols…"

"the inhabitants of Samaria shall fear because of the calves of Bethaven" (]Hosea 4:15-17, 10:5)

"…he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol (Heb., "Aven", a vanity)" (Isaiah 66:3)

There are 5 rivers Avon in Britain, of which three pass through Gloustershire, where Celtic worship of this god was centered. In the same English district is an old town named Avening. The 'ing' suffix means the place of, so Avening is the place of Aven.

Historian Samuel Lysons, in "Our British Ancestors" says:
"The worship at Beth-Aven, in Canaan, and that of Avening in Gloucestershire, and that of Aven, Heliopolis, or Baal bec, were all identical. The stone altars, the high place, the calves' bones discovered there, mark the similarity."

Gen. 46:20: “unto Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On”

Lysons states, "That Aven and On were the same, is shown by the Greek translation of Beth-aven as 'the house of On.' Heliopolis, Egypt was at different periods called Ain, Aven, and On… Possibly our word Evening, Dutch Avond, and German Abend, may represent Aven, as the declining sun."

British place-names showing early sun-worship include Ansley, Anston, Anslow, Ancoats, Ancaster, Ancroft, Anford, Anwick, Avening, Arran (here a circle of Druidic stones with a cromlech in the centre indicates sun worship), and many others. Yet more evidence that Britain was originally settled by "backsliding Israel".

...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Ancient-Paths-Discovering-Celtic/dp/0330531514

you may not necessarily agree with his thesis but you can learn a lot from his work.

The reviews are not good but I've decided to splash out a fiver on it.

Just gonna watch this clip.

Some bullet points. Romans and Greeks attest that these Britons are highly educated in skilled trades and science (eg enamelling, glass and metal-work, fabrics and clothing) and cultured, people from across Europe were sent to their colleges. They needed good roads for trade and their prized chariots. The notion that the Romans brought civilisation to these "savages" is in a real sense upside-down. the Romans were like a Nazi war machine, many of their roads and villas have been found to have been build on top of pre-existing ones.

A flourishing society needs good laws (including food and medicine). The Druids were basically old testament priests. Stone circles were built as astronomical clocks to enable them to keep the feasts. These people readily accepted the gospel when the first generation of Christians (including Joseph of Arimathea) came, escaping the persecutions in Judea, Culdich / Culdee means refugee. When Augustine came he found that the Church was already here and they certainly didn't want to call the Pope their leader.

The booklet has many interesting quotes from historians Tertullian, Origin, Gildas etc. Gildas says King Caradoc of the Welsh Silures was taken captive to Rome was converted by Paul (also in prison there), Paul later writes to his children Linus, Claudia & son-in-law Prudens (2 Timothy).

the druids were the clergy class of the celtic britain tribes and as such were shamanistic in their practice

nothing like 'christian priests'.

and the tribes of wales and ireland different significantly from the Catuvellauni, Trinovantes and iceni in the south of england, all of who became heavily influenced by the romans.

Celtic britian continued as a non-christian society long after the romans left - in fact found themsevles settling in comfortably alongside the danes vikings and even the original saxon invasions given the similarlities in their polyeithist faiths. From then the 'anglo' saxons remained a polyeithist peoples till at least the kingdoms of Mercia were de-throned / converted over 500 years later

Please explain why you say that.


I gave evidence of how they continued old testament ideas and mixed in worship of Bel etc, just like Israel often did in the Old Testament. Many accepted Christianity but the idea "Christian priests" sounds catholic, which didn't come until later (with Augustine).


Of course, the latter were overrun by them!


Naa, the Danes and Vikings invaded and visciously fought them, King Alfred of Wessex managed to stop them taking over the whole land.

I wouldn't say Celtic society became "Christian", just that there was a thriving Christian community within in, as well as larger groups of pagans/polytheists.