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hungarianbee · 4 years

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Way of the Witcher: bits of lore

Disclaimer: Post contains spoilers to the Witcher games These things may be canon-typical, but the following trigger warnings apply if you want to check out the cards: gore, monster dismemberment, needles, body horror, insects and spiders

“In a world plagued by horrors and monstrosities humanity desperately needed a new type of weapon to turn back the tide. Created by ingenious Alzur, witchers — professional monster slayers of exceptional strength, speed, and agility were tasked to end the threat once and for all. Organized into different schools they honed their craft and passed their knowledge onto novices in training. Some of them were destined to become the legendary heroes and protectors of humanity. Others — the very thing they were supposed to fight…”

Since the gwent expansion was anounced I followed it with rapt attention; every bit of lore is a gem in my eyes. I decided to write down my thoughts of the cards and lore pieces revealed in a post. Share that knowledge around, amirite?

The post references Gwent cards which were leaked (2020 november-december). The theme is mutation and everything that comes with it; namely sweet-sweet lore of the lesser known witcher schools: the Bears, Cats, Vipers and Griffins.

Tucker in, under the cut there is 4.5k analysis of each card that came out.

We’re starting with a theme, then work our way throught the 4 schools (each contain the following: a leader, a mentor, an adept, a general witcher, a specific job, an item, a school relevant monster, 2 known witchers and a location), then go through a Witcher 1 throwback, Salamandra, and round it with a few new monsters and neutral cards.

While I describe most of the cards concisely and all the known witchers and locations are on my blog, you might want to look the cards in their (small) glory: [DO IT HERE]

Sounds good? Here we go!

Edit: [this source is better]

The theme is mutation - be it monsters created by transmutation, witchers or salamadra

If that is true, there are monster cards that seemingly stand out: the Succubus and the Phooca

If we are to believe that they do connect to the mutation theme, then

(1) we can conclude that Phoocas (a rare, and more dangerous form of Nekkers; they can pull your head off by sheer force, watch out) are a natural mutation of the original species,

(2) but we’re still left with the Succubi (an inherently demonic creature). They might have chosen it because of its appearance: succubi have horns and goat-like legs. (Note: in the graphic novel “House of Glass” the succubus character has wings, but lacks hooves. In that sense, she could be mutated.)

Breaking it down into factions/schools (some of the cards can be paired up; these cards are interpreted together):

School of the Viper: starting with the vipers, because they are my favourite

Viper Witcher Mentor & Viper Witcher Adept: the flavour text says that the Viper mentors are exceptionally cold and ruthless, and that’s underlined by the story the art tells: the mentor busies himself with sharpening a blade, and in the background we can see the adept attempting to kill his best friend goat, as was ordered. The mentor watches this from the corner of his eye. Young Vipers are to kill their pets (which they nurtured for years) before becoming a fully-fledged witcher. The latter could mean that the boy depicted on the card hasn’t even gone through the Trial of Grasses.

Viper Witcher: On the card we see an unknown Viper crouching over a royalty he killed. I feel like this type of card is meant to represent what we think a general Witcher of said school would be like. Apparently Vipers just like to slay the nobility *shrug*. The flavour text informs us, that Vipers call their two swords “fangs”, and that their style consists of fast and furious attack aimed to overwhelm the enemy.

Viper Witcher Alchemist: Every school has a specialty; Vipers are proficient in potion or poison making. The right side of the alchemist’s face seems to have healed burn marks; a blown up concoction might have caused it.

Ivar Evil-Eye: So far there’s little to know about Ivar. He was either the Master of the Viper Keep, or the founder himself (gwent suggests the latter). He’s described as heavily scarred (facial scars suggests burns and slash marks too), and each of them has a terrible story to tell.

Warritt the All-Seeing: Warritt is a (newly introduced) Viper with heavy disfiguration to the upper part of his face: his eyes are sealed shut (possibly by burn marks, though his hair remains intact). The art shows Warritt drawing a modified version of the Supirre sign in the air to help with his loss of sight. As the wiki says: “Supirre is a Sign used for eavesdropping. Drawn on a solid surface, it allows the people near this surface to listen nearby conversations which would be normally inaudible due to the distance or background noise.” It was only used in Sapkowsky’s second volume of the Hussite trilogy (not yet translated to English), which is entirely separate from the Witcher novels.

Kolgrim: Fate laughed at this Viper. As a kid he was swapped by a weeper, saved by a witcher, than rejected by his own mother who believed that the fake child was the real one. Later, as a grown witcher Ivar instructed him to find a lost weapon diagram. On his journey he was accused - ironically - in White Orchard of kidnapping a child. Invoking a Temerian law, Kolgrim was told to cleanse their crypt (as seen on the card) then he can go. The truth is revealed in Witcher 3 - Kolgrim was beheaded by the villagers before he could even step into the crypt. To add insult to injury: the child was eaten by a drowner. The gwent card therefore shows the optimistic outcome: that Kolgrim reached the crypt and passed in battle. And what’s up with a crypt full of wraiths anyway? White Orchard is shady, guys. (Lil’ trivia: Kolgrim’s eyes are yellow-green.)

Vypper: Basically an overgrown snake that likes damp marshes (they even fight the local kikimores for territory). They only relate to the mutation theme by their nature - they resemble the “school’s animal”.

Gorthur Gvaed: The Bloodgate Keep is located in the chasms of the Tir Tochair mountains. It’s built so high were you to look down from the bridge leading into the keep, you would only see fog (one could wonder how the vipers trained in these conditions). The bridge is made so that you’d have to cross the lookout tower - it might have served as a check in spot. The post itself is circled by the stone coils of a snake; the top is open and has a huge lit bonfire in the middle for warmth-keeping and possibly signaling. Unluckily, it didn’t stop the Usurper’s army from destroying the keep.

Coated Weapons: They leaned heavily into the alchemy and assassin side of the school. Vipers coat their blades with an acidic liquid, so they can kill a man with a nick of it.

School of the Cat:

Cat Witcher Mentor & Cat Witcher Adept: On the adept card we can see a young Cat walking the tightrope blindfolded (they start with close to the ground and slowly increase the distance with time); the mentor is looking up at him. Like the Vipers, Cat mentors are nonchalant about risking the kids as seen from the flavour text: “If you fall, it’s over. Your nine lives are up, kid.” Furthermore, the background of the Cat Witcher Adept card shows the not yet destroyed Stygga Citadel. The Cat Witcher Mentor is in the same scene and we can see lots of potatoes and cabbages; cats definitely eat their veggies.

Cat Witcher: The card shows a Cat in the heat of battle mid-jump; his hood is up, blood is flying everywhere. The flavour text emphasizes that cats are known for their mad bloodlust, not stopping killing even after the enemy capitulated.

Cat Witcher Saboteur: A Cat perches next to the window, a smoking bomb in hand, eavesdropping on nobles. A rope is hung from somewhere out of the pic, possibly for a quick exit. Vesemir comments that these are many-a deeds the cats did that taint the reputation of witchers.

Gezras of Leyda: Gezras is a not yet known redheaded Cat witcher. Following the pattern he seems to be the founder of the Cat School. His flavour text shows that even back then (when the mutagens made Cats emotionless) they were inclined to dislike humans: “Take a contract from Aen Seidhe over a dh’oine any day, as you’re far less likely to receive a knife between the ribs in place of coin.”

Brehen: Now this cat embodies the Cat madness. He’s known as the Cat of Iello because he massacred everyone there. He was consequently shunned by all the schools, and he was even convinced that Vesemir put a kill order on his head. He met Geralt later in the 1240s on his way to claim the bounty for the princess. Thinking that Geralt was there to rob him of his chance of the bounty, Brehen took a priestess as hostage (this is what we see on the gwent card). Geralt managed to convince him to put away the blade, and they parted without crossing blades. When meeting with the striga he scoffed into her face that “she won’t be his first royal”. But his luck ran out. The Temerians buried him and fabricated the story of a cowardly witcher stealing their coin. I’m halfway convinced we see Brehen in the netflix series.

Gaetan: This boy broke into the fandom like a bulldozer. After the folks in Honorton cheated him of his pay and tried to kill him, Gaetan flew into rage and killed everyone there except Millie, a girl who reminded him of his sister. That’s the scene we see on the card. And then Geralt robs/kills him.

Saber-Tooth Tiger (Stealth): Another huge animal/monster related to the school. It’s story is this: “The prized possession of royal menagerie, until a commando of Scoia’tael assaulted the exhibition, released the beast, and set it upon its cruel masters. Since that day, it has acquired a selective taste for human flesh.” Another cat turning against humans.

Stygga Castle: An outside view of what we already saw on the Cat Witcher Adept card. It’s located on a cliff, and the sun shines into it just right (so that the Cats can bask in the light). The walls form a circle where they shelter the inner grounds, and a bigger tower emerges in the middle. The Castle could be reached by the thin bridge connecting it to the mainland, or by the cliffs (if one is brave enough).

Making a Bomb: Cats seem to have a specialty in bombs. Guess where Lambert got his interest from *winkwink*

School of the Griffin: lots of pairs in this one

Griffin Witcher Mentor & Griffin Witcher Adept: Compared to the other schools, this pairing is tame - the adept is climbing a tree to retrieve a crossbow bolt. We can see the mentor in the background. On the mentor card the adept waves down with the retrieved crossbow bolt in hand. It shows a kind of comradeship that’s not present in the other 3 schools. The flavour text emphasizes the importance of knowledge. Students are afforded to choose their final Trial: recite the entire Liber Tenebrum (Book of Shadows; one of Keldar’s favourite books) or steal a griffin’s egg. Noone’s chosen the former.

Griffin Witcher: The witcher is shown shooting down a griffin. According to the flavour text they prefer hunting with silver-tipped arrowheads instead of swords.

Archgriffin & Griffin Witcher Ranger: On the Griffin Ranger card we see the witcher crouching over track marks. On the archgriffin card he found the albino (or very old) monster, who’s already killed someone (probably a lumberjack, judging by the axe). According to the flavour text, Griffin Witchers are trained to be professional trackers; nothing can stop them to reach their prey. Even though archgriffins are considered the embodiment of courage, loyalty and fighting spirit, the gwent card corrects the notion that the Griffin Witcher were named after the monster. In truth, they got the name in honour of their founder’s mentor, a knight named Gryphon.

Erland of Larvik: Continuing the trend, Erland is the founder of the Griffin School (one of the two that are confirmed 100%). He’s from the first generation of witcher, mutated by Alzur himself. After the Order began fracturing he had a confrontation with Arnaghan (who’ll be the founder of the bear school). Arnaghad almost killed one of his brothers, slashed Erland across the face then parted ways with the Order and left Morgraig Castle with his own group. Seeing that the the remaining witchers couldn’t go on like that, he grabbed his 13 best friend and left to Kaer Seren, where (after purging it from spectres) he founded the Griffin School which focused on magic, preparedness and flexibility. His teaching emphasized knightly values (mimicking his long-dead mentor, a knight named Gryphon) in hopes that it would make future witchers’ life easier. It didn’t.

Coen & Keldar: The cards are mainly connected by background. Coen is finished killing what appears to be an albino arachas (but it’s definitely an insectoid), while Keldar’s taking notes. We can rightly assume that he’s updating their bestiary, since he’s one of the teachers/mentors who focus on gathering and sharing knowledge. Coen’s flexibility shows in the flavour text: “There is no such thing as a fair fight. Every advantage and every opportunity that arises is used in combat.” Not very knightly, is it?

Kaer Seren: The “Star Keep” Erland and his friends fled to. It was used by the Order’s mages to mutate witchers (that’s why it was haunted by spectres). It’s located at the edge of the Dragon mountains by the sea between Poviss and Kovir. It’s said to possess the great library, which later mages tried to get for themselves. They messed up: by bringing down an avalanche on the Keep, that knowledge was destroyed. The keep was badly damaged and many witchers died.

Target Practice: The Griffin School’s specialty is their precise aim - they “can split an apple in two from a hundred paces”.

School of the Bear:

Bear Witcher Mentor & Bear Witcher Adept: The adept card shows that young witcher are taught to catch fish by hand (just like their school relevant animal). On the mentor card the elder witcher leads a group of younglings in the mountains; possibly out to teach tracking. The cards are connected by flavour text. The young Bear witcher-would-be’s need to complete the Trial of the Mountain, which consists of them climbing Mount Gorgon (also known as the Devil Mountain; it is the highest peak of the Amell range) to retrieve a runestone. The Trial often ends with the kids frozen to death. The Bear Mentor card’s flavour confirms it: “If you’re unsure of the way, just keep a lookout for markers - the frozen corpses of would-be witchers.” This sounds ominous - don’t they collect their fallen?

Bear Witcher: Bears are solitary hunters as seen in the flavour text: “life alone can be tough”. The witcher in the pic just dismembered what looks like a ghoul (with a tail?).

Bear Witcher Quartermaster: This one I like. The Quartermaster is an amputee (missing one of his arms, which was taken by a bear; must have won that fight one-handed), yet they still found a job for him where he can be useful. His flavour text suggest he likes Mahakam mead.

Arnaghad: The founder of the Bear School, he never felt kinship with his fellow witchers. After attacking a witcher named Rhys over a contract, wounding him deeply from shoulder to waist, he returned to Morgraig, attacked Erland then left with his possé to found the Bear School - Haern Caduch - in the Amell Mountains. Later he almost died in a betrayal, which resulted in another schism and the foundation of the Viper School.

Gerd: Gerd’s a legendary witcher who fled to Skellige after allying with a Usurper instead of his daughter, who later issued a warrant for his arrest. He has a busy time in Skellige: first slaying a dragon, befriending the Jarl Torgeir, killing a bunch of sirens, losing so many weapon diagrams you wouldn’t believe, losing half his pay and silver sword on gwent, escaping Nilfgaard and managing to slay a striga, killing some of his pursuers, only to be caught up in the siege of Torgeir’s castle, where he died in the ruins. On the card he’s showing Bear-typical strength: he’s tearing apart a siren with his bear hands.

Junod of Belhaven: Junod had a dubious background, but was thought to be the child of a brave dwarf and a giantess. He’s a huge man, with a big bushy beard and bald head. His sobriquet is false; he took it after Ivo, because he liked the ring of it. He was known as a strict haggler and a bit of a gambler. In 1243 he took a contract in hopes of cash (he wanted to forge the Grandmaster Ursine Armour). The subterranean monster was said to live in the caverns. Junod drew bear signs and wrote a warning on the wall (this is the scene we see on the card). He was however ill-prepared; the beast turned out to be a shaelmaar (a type of relic Gaetan slew once) that killed him in that very cavern.

Dire Bear: Once again related to the school in question, the Dire Bear is stuck with so much weaponry that it looks like a walking armory. Lots of witchers must have tried to slay it, yet it still kicks - just like Bear Witchers, it’s resilient till the very end.

Haern Caduch: Built into the side of the Amell Mountains, it’s the coldest environment of all the schools. As with the other schools, the Bears were forced out of it due to folk riots. It was left in disrepair to be buried under snow and ice (as seen on the card). It’s name could be translated as “Piercing Whiskers”.

Armor Up: As Bear’s are more likely to stand in the way of attack than dodge, they need to wear a heavy armour at all times.

Salamandra:

Roland Bleinheim & Gellert Bleinheim: Witcher 1 characters. They are thought to be brothers, leading the Salamandra organization. As drug lords one heads the fisstech operation in Vizima’s sewers (Roland), the other in the swamps (Gellert). The flavour text pretty much matches: both of them wondering what the other one is doing.

Salamandra Mage: The art itself was already leaked in China around 2 years back, and there were a few theories. One of them was that the man depicted is Zerrikanian, and I think that’s correct. Both the facial tattoo, darker skin, thinly braided hair and fire magic points in that direction. Azar Javed (a known Salamandra fire mage) happens to be a Zerrikanian escapee too.

Salamandra Lackey: A girl with the Salamandra-stapled mask runs from a city guard. The flavour text says the following: “Lackeys are expected to perform their first five jobs for no pay, demonstrating their passion for the gig.” The organization monitors from the beginning that only those remain who are extremely loyal to their cause.

Fallen Rayla: A little background for those who are unfamiliar with her: Rayla of Lyria was a veteran of the Nilgaardian Wars. She harbours anti-nonhuman sentiments after she was captured by Scoia’taels and severely maimed. The Rayla we see on the card is a mutant - in Witcher 1 she was supposedly shot down by Scoia’tael, and Salamandra found her close to death, subjected her to mutation. She was killed by Geralt.

Salamander: The card shows a bright blue spotted salamander. It has two tails and heads (possibly grown together?). The Salamander is a symbol of the organization. Metaphorically speaking it could mean, that Salamandra thought of itself as something untouchable: “best to avoid petting them, as the salamander, when threatened, secretes a deadly toxin”.

Failed Experiment: The card - ironically - thrives when it’s poisoned. The “experiment” only resembles a human in shape. It’s clutching the table ends, as if trying to escape still. It’s fair to assume that they later dissected it: “even failed experiments can serve a purpose”.

Salamandra Abomination: A step further from the failed experiment - we see the results of pushing science’s boundaries. Only the skull is left intact, everything else of the body is covered with insectoid-like growths.

Stolen Mutagens: Gruesome organ harvesting. The witcher heart (?) glows, which is either an artistic decision (probable) or the mages sent magic into the body, and the mutagens light up (like angiographia). Three types of mutagens can be harvested: red (strength), blue (magic) or green (resilience). I headcanon that the amount they inject of the three types can vary - that’s how you get strength inclined witchers like the wolves (red), or big ass mothers like the bears (green).

Salamandra Hideout: There are multiple hideouts in Witcher 1 (outskirt of Visima, crypt in sewers and one in the trade quarters). The one depicted here is the fisstech lab in the sewers. It shows a dimly lit, cobwebbed room. There’s an elevation where a body lays on the table. The elevation’s floor is gridded, so the blood and other fluids can freely flow down into the sewer water, where many bodies are already discarded recklessly.

Neutral:

Alzur & Viy & Koshchey: Alzur was a charismatic mage and spell inventor, who created many horrible monsters, like the koshchey (with the spell: Alzur’s Double Cross) and the Viy (a huge centipede-like insectoid). He was also the one who did the lion’s share of work with the witcher’s mutation.

Cosimo Malaspina: Cosimo was the teacher of Alzur. He was known for his knowledge in hybridization and genetic modification. Him and Alzur were the true creators of the witchers sect. On the gwent card, three man are shown prodding at a mutated body. Cosimo (the old dude) is in the middle, Alzur might be the one on the left and that leaves Idarran on the right. His flavour text paints him as cold and clinical, someone without empathy: “Children keep asking him for gifts. He doesn’t know why, but it really helps with finding subjects for his experiments.”

Idarran of Ulivo & Idr & Wererat: Idarran was one of the contributers of the witcher experiments. He’s an expert in hybridization and genetic modification, whose teacher was Alzur. He was a pale kid who lived in the canals of Vizima and experimented on rats at the age of 5. He found beauty in gruesome creations, like the Wererat (a human-sized rat on roids) and the Idr (a big centipede-like insectoid). He’s disdained by Geralt for his many monsters.

Triangle within a Triangle: It’s a magic spell used to introduce a series of mutations and to greatly increase the mass of a given body. That way they can create huge monstrosities, like the koshchey. Adepts often confuse it with a pentagram which can lead to infernal disasters.

Selective mutation: The card shows a close up of a young man’s eyes - one mutated (catlike) one human. His skin shows his high toxicity level, ashen with prominent veins. He’s held down as alchemists prepare to inject a yellow concoction into the human eye. It’s possible that after the success of witchers the mages tried to recreate the changes in smaller scale, then unmake it in turn, unsuccessfully.

Witcher Student: This is not really a card, but I included it anyway. The card’s ability is - ironically - doomed, and to add insult to injury, its flavour text is the following well-known fact: “Four out of ten boys survive… at most.” It’s also a point for black humour that the gwent commentators added: the Trial of Grasses card boosts this unit significantly.

Berengar: He’s a Wolf School Witcher who blamed his school for denying him a normal life and consequently abandoned them. In Witcher 1 Geralt can decide to kill or spare him. In a letter he admits that he was a coward because he betrayed Kaer Morhen and worked with Salamadra in hope that they can undo his mutation. His card references a questline in Witcher 1, where he tried to reason with the vodyanoi (~lovecraftian fish people) to spare the village’s prize-winning cow, named Strawberry. This is non-canon; in the game Geralt takes over the quest to do this instead.

Leo: Another Witcher 1 character. He was an orphan taken in by Vesemir. He was a kind-hearted but hot-headed man, who had all the training but not the mutations and the experience - he never killed a man. The flavour text of his gwent card kind of mocks his death: “He would have caught the arrow if he only had some heads-up.” He’s burned on a pyre and his cenotaph can be found south of Kaer Morhen.

Geralt: Quen: The last classical sign that wasn’t yet a card. In the art, Geralt is wearing the Manticore armour

Snowdrop: She’s a not yet seen character; impish looking female bard with light blond hair (flowers braided on the side) who plays a medieval version of the fiddle to a rooster. There’s a horseshoe hanging from the hem of his pants. She’s also seen in the gwent: journey #3 launch trailer. She’s narrating that she was saved by Alzur. Alzur told her about his plans of creating witchers to fight the beasts of the Continent, and she admired him so much she spread his story (”let me tell you about the greatest sorceress to ever lived”). Their story will unveil in the next week, I’ll probably update accordingly. It’s also interesting that Alzur says in the gwent intro (regarding witchers): “Bards will toil to do justice to their feats.” As if his own successes and experiences will be mirrored in his creations. Projecting much?

Monsters:

Viy & Idr: both of them are centipede-like insectoids conjured by infamous mages (see: Alzur and Idarran)

Wererat: same can be said about this one. Idarran experimented on Vizima’s sewer rats since the age of 5. This human sized abomination was the end result.

Succubus: We already discussed how the “Succubus” doesn’t fit the theme. Other interesting thing is the surrounding of her - in the background we can see a skull full of some kinda of dark liquid; she’s also holding a goblet. I’m not saying she’s drinking blood, but if she does, it would shed some questions as succubi don’t need to drink blood at all.

Phooca: As nekkers’ rare big brother, phoocas are ogroids that have the strength to rip a man’s head off with their bear hands. According to the wiki, in Celtic folklore they are regarded as shapeshifting fairies.

Koshchey: A witcher 1 boss, koshcheys are spider-like abominations summoned by mages. The woman standing her ground in the picture is Visenna (Geralt’s druid mom). In the story she’s the one to kill the first koshchey ever created.

Spontaneous Evolution: Under the Red Moon the wolf mutated into an amalgamation of eyes and teeth. Malaspina possibly added something to the mix that proved unstable. The card’s name is kind of ironic - this change is not spontaneous (it was induced) but could be related to evolution (it would imply that this form is somehow advantageous to the current environment and helps adaptation). (Note: in my opinion spontaneous generation would be a better term: it’s the thought that living creatures could arise from nonliving matter.)

Hybrid: the card shows a two-headed wolf or dog. Pretty straight-forward.

Chimera: A creature created my Cosimo Malaspina. He combines the genes of a fiend and griffin, then added a trace of insectoid and wyvern. It kind of looks like a furred wyvern with antlers. Interestingly the frightener (an insectoid; a rare result of magical experiment) is also called a chimera.

Dol Dhu Lokke: a new monster lair location. The depending on how you translate “lokke” the Elder can be read as “black valley place” or “alluring black valley”. It’s so dangerous - housing many-a horrors - that even a witcher thinks twice before going near it.

Interesting tidbits

Coen has hair, which is weird because so far he was described in all sources as bald.

There used to be a card that was also called Viper Witcher, which is now referred to as “Kingslayer”

The Bear Witcher’s face was drawn after one of CDPR’s employee.

The Koshchey’s card title has a typo: “Koschchey”.

Easter eggs (mainly in flavour text)

The Spontaneous Evolution card references The Powerpuff Girls intro: “Professor Malaspina accidentally added an extra ingredient to the concoction - compound X.”

The Bear Witcher card might reference a song of Baloo from the Jungle Book (The Bare Necessities): “Life alone on the road can be tough - be sure to bring all the bare necessities.”

#my shit #the witcher #gwent #witcher meta #witcher lore #i worked really hard on this #i hope it shows lol #if y'all have any thoughts i'd be happy to hear about them #cross my heart i don't bite

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amuseoffyre · 5 years

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Crossing Paths - Updated Timeline

Since I’ve added a few more scenes/chapters, time to update the ol’ timeline again. You should see the state of my spreadsheet.

Show canon in bold. Events mentioned in fic but not yet written in italic. Everything in fic in normal font. (Events surrounding each encounter in brackets) Tis all on AO3 in chronological order as well as under this the fic: crossing paths tag.

4004BC - Eden

3000BC - Mesopotamia

2197BC - Shinar (The Tower of Babel)

2000BC - Canaan (Shortly after Sodom and Gomorrah)

1840BC - Imet, Egypt (The Wadjet incident)

1766BC - Peniel (Jacob wrestles with ‘God’)

1450BC - Red Sea (Exodus)

1448BC - Sinai (10 Commandments)

1188BC - Ilium, Turkey (The Trojan War)

994BC - Jerusalem (David & Bathsheba)

534BC - Kapilavastu, Nepal (Buddha)

480BC - Yangzhou, China (The Great Canal)

240BC - Nanzheng, China (Halley’s Comet)

112BC - Noricum, Eastern Alps (Siege of Noricum)

30AD The Wilderness, Judea (The Temptations of Jesus)

33AD - Crucifixion + post-Crucifixion in Jerusalem

33AD - The Garden Tomb, Jerusalem (The Empty Tomb)

41AD - Rome

377 - Teotihuacan (The Quetzacoatl Incident)

473 - Kingdom of Wessex

565 - Loch Ness, Scotland (St. Columba versus Nessie)

793 - Lindisfarne, England (Vikings)

879 - Burgundy, France (Arrangement #1)

894 - Baroli, India (Arrangement #2)

902 - Mercia, England (Arrangement #3)

909 - Mercia England (The Blessing of Cynethryth)

917 - Priesca, Spain (Arrangement #4)

947 - Glastonbury, England (St. Dunstan)

978 - Lake Chad, Chad (Arrangement #5)

1020 - Southwark, London (Arrangement #6)

1097 - Nicaea, Greece (Crusades)

1222 - Karabakh, Armenia (The Mongol Horde)

1304 - Dunfermline & Glasgow, Scotland (Robert the Bruce)

1324 - Gao, Mali (Mansu Musa’s Hajj)

1345 - Sarai Buta, Azerbaijan (The Great Mortality #1)

1347 - Messina, Sicily (The Great Mortality #2)

1349 - Near Toledo, Spain (The Great Mortality #3)

1350 - Kutná Hora, Czech Republic (The Great Mortality #4)

1351 - Smolensk, Russia - (The Great Mortality #5)

1421 - Heaven (Hussite Wars)

1427 - Lavais, Switzerland (Swiss Witch Hunts)

1431 - Rouen, France (100 Years War/Joan of Arc)

1437 - Dunbar, Scotland & Samarkand, Uzbekistan (Scots royalty & Ulugh Beg)

1440 - Baghdad, Iraq (Aziraphale robs a library)

1442 - Zurich, Switzerland (Old Zurich War)

1456 - Belgrade, then-Hungary (Pope Callixtus excommunicates a comet)

1503 - Florence, Italy (Da Vinci)

1531 - Ingolstadt, Germany (Halley’s Comet again)

1532 - The Pacific, near Peru (England breaks with Rome)

1568 - Caerwys, Wales (Eisteddfod)

1570 - Novgorod, Russia (Siege of Novgorod - Ivan the Terrible)

1583 - Istanbul, Turkey (Harem Intrigue)

1601 - The Globe

1655 - Częstochowa, Poland (Siege of Częstochowa)

1658 - The Caribbean (Buccaneer era)

1675/1676 - London (Charles II’s Coffee Ban)

1676 - Border of the Ottoman Empire (Zaporozhian Cossacks)

1677 - London (Crowley’s initial reaction to 1676)

1725 - London (Crowley’s actual reaction when he finds out what Aziraphale actually did in 1676 :D)

1773 - Boston, USA (Boston Tea Party)

1790 - Southwark, London (Chevalier Saint-Georges)

1793 - Paris

1816 - London, England (Year Without Summer)

1846 - London, England (Prophecies of the Apocalypse)

1859 - Rome, Italy (Crowley’s on-going panic-attack)

1862 - London, England

1868 - London, England (Estrangement #1)

1871 - London, England ( Estrangement #2)

1876 - Oxford, England (Estrangement #3 - A Wilde Oscar appears)

1882 - London, England (Estrangement #4 - The 100 Guineas Club)

1900 - Paris, France (Estrangement # 5 - Oscar Wilde’s death)

1916 - Verdun-sur-Meuse, France (Estrangement #6 - The Battle of Verdun)

1941 - London (Church and Nazis with pre- and post-canon scenes)

1946 - The Third Circle of Hell (Repercussions from the Estrangement)

1952 - Soho, London (A Magic Act)

1967 - London

1969 - New York City, America (The Moon Landing)

1972 - London, England (First Pride Parade)

1974 - Santiago, Chile (Repercussions of the Coup)

1975 - Hyde Park, London (Pride & Epiphanies)

No, you’ve got carried away. I’m fine.

#fic: crossing paths #good omens fic #good omens #crowley #aziraphale #history geek

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inquisitionworkersunion-blog · 4 years

Text

Hussite

The following is a short story I originally wrote on my writing blog in December of 2019.

I opened the doors of the chapel, and I saw Sebastian kneeling down in front of the altar, staring intently into the eyes of the crucified Lord. He wore his oversized black cassock, practically draped over his feet due to its length. His pure white surplice was worn just above his cassock, neatly resting above his shoulders and running down to his waist. I ran down the aisle to go see him and called out his name. His tiny, blonde head jerked back to see me, and he raised himself to face me. I bent down and embraced him, holding him close to myself and repeating “Oh Sebastian, oh Sebastian, oh Sebastian, you frightened me so much” I may have held on to him forever had he not turned ice cold in my grasp.

I backed up slightly and looked into his face. His dirty, golden locks rested in just above his steel-blue eyes, and his white pupils peered right through my soul. He was smiling, yet shaking all over his body. I looked at his hands and watched him repeatedly tap his pinkie and ring finger with his thumb, pointing downwards with his index and middle finger to reveal a deep, bloodied wound on the palms of his hands. I looked at his face with horror, unable to speak, yet his gaze was still peering past my eyes. I followed his fingers down to the marble floor, where his cassock met the ground. The crimson wine has begun to dribble from underneath his vestments, forming a small pool around him. When I looked up, he no tiled his angelic face to his side, and his smile slightly thinned.

“Father ?” he cheered, “Is Jesus smiling?”

I couldn’t answer him, every time I tried to find words to speak they simply came out as nothingness. The longer I stared into the clouds of his eyes and started falling down towards the Earth. Finally, a few words navigated their way out of my body, “My son, I- I, well Sebastian, there’s some”

“Father?” he called to me, his grin slightly disappearing as his foggy eyes widened, full with curiosity and concern. He almost looked like a confused puppy when he repeated to me, “Is Jesus smiling?” He picked up his bloodied hand and pointed with his index finger in the direction of the altar. I followed it to the crucifix.

Sebastian lost his sight to cataracts early in life, so early he never remembered what the chapel looked like. He would ask me to describe the stained glass windows around the church, and often times he would ask questions about the Faith or God while being with me. Once he became an altar boy, his parents often would ask if I could watch him after the mass, and sometimes for hours on Sundays, I would walk around the entire church with him or lay down beside the altar and tell him stories as he tried to imagine it all as only a child could believe.

I looked to the cross, and Christ was in agony. The woodcarver put the utmost detail into every single muscle in Jesus’s body showing pure agony, even to the point of placing small painted drops of blood coming from his thorny crown. His physique was reduced to point starvation, and even a pagan could tell he was in pain. “Sebastian, Christ is dying on the cross and is in pain,” I told him, “He is giving up his life for us on that cross, bleeding from -“

“But Father, is Jesus smiling now?” He seemed slightly timid this time, and any traces of his smile have all but disappeared. “Is He smiling in Heaven?”

“Of course Sebastian, Christ always loves his children, and I’m sure -“

“Father, does God love me?”

His remark stunned me, and I was speechless for a moment. Sebastian had always been so happy in mass and seemed excited whenever we spoke about our faith and church traditions, which is why it surprised me so much to hear him doubt himself like this. He was only 12 years old, much too young to be disenfranchised with his faith. I gently touched his wet, bloodied left palm and slowly went to hold it in both of mine, and he began again to shake. I was frightened.

“Sebastian, of course, God loves you. Everything around you has been made simply for you to enjoy! You remember the forest you used to tell me about before mass? The one where you used to sit around and just look at the beauty of the entire forest? Where you could pet deer and climb trees and simply exist in peace when things were rough? That was just a thousandth of a percent of the love God has for you! Jesus, even when he was persecuted and constantly surrounded by millions of followers, always took the time to express how much love he had for the children like you. The Lord -“

“But Father, how can God love me if I sin?” His cloudy eyes began to show signs of breaking down, and a single tear started to form. “You said in mass that God punished Sodom and Gomorrah by sending the cities straight to Hell. What makes me different from them? Why should God not send me to sit with Pilate?”

“Sebastian…” I paused. I had never in my life thought he could experience such feelings, especially at such a young age. “Who taught you these things?” I let go of his hand and broke eye contact to look at him. The pool of blood under his cassock has begun ceased to flow, and his hands had turned white, while his stigmata had turned black. His breath became shallow and spread apart, and almost like a machine.

“Father…” He paused. He looked as if he were out of breath. I felt as if I needed to comfort him.

“Sebastian, don’t you remember your first confession? When you entered the confessional you were crying, telling me that you didn’t know if you ever had done anything wrong. You told me you thought God was mad at you for not messing up and that you were wasting mine and his time! Do you remember how I pulled the screen divider away and sat you next to me? Do you remember how you clutched onto my cassock the whole time we were in the confessional, you kept holding on even as we left the booth? And do you remember your parents trying to rip you off because your mother had a meeting to go to? Oh, you sure had quite a grip!” I smiled, looking away from him to the altar.

“But Father, I do remember all this, but-” He paused, and looking as if struggling to say his peace, he started up again apprehensively. “You said Hus left God’s grace, that he abandoned God. And the church ki – he died because of that. Father? Why should God not kill me?” He pointed towards the wall, his fingers landing on a blank piece of a brick wall between two stain glass windows. “You told everyone nulla salus, so why do I deserve love?”

I turned back from the altar to see the boy, his surplice now covered in soot and smelling of incense soot, staining the last untouched piece of his clothing. His cassock by this point was drenched in blood, and his face has started to look ashen as compared to before. “Sebastian, my son, please. Why do you doubt your own worth to Christ when everything in your life has led you to him? How, even when your sisters passed from you and your parents became busier, God was the only one to welcome you in unconditionally?”

“Father, I” He started to choke, and dust came out of his mouth. I went to hold him, but he grabbed my hand until I pulled back. “Father, you don’t understand the -“

“Do you remember how I asked your father if you could stay with me so I could talk with you, and when he asked you if you wanted to say all you did was nod your teary head into my side without taking your face out of my thigh? Your father didn’t know what to say! And how since then, we’ve spent how many Sundays together?”

“Yes, Father,” he whispered, “but…”

“Sebastian? Do you remember what I gave you that day?”

“A medal, our Lady of Fatima”

“And do you remember the story?”

He took a gasp for air. “Father, please… please ju-“

“Do you remember what she told the children?”

“Father…” He squeezed my hand and looked right into my eyes for the first time. His gaze pierced my soul, and the fog drifted away in his eyes to reveal a hurt child calling out for help. He was scared and precisely by what he was looking at. “But father, in mass… in mass…”He reached out towards the cross, fighting for his life. The stigmata on his palm disappeared, and his eyes were now staring straight into the sad, tired face of Christ upon the cross. With one last breath, he poured out his soul into his last words.

“You said people like me deserve- deserve to…”

Sebastian fell into my arms, his face into my lap. His body was now covered in the blood of his covenant, and his face was left covered in ash. He was frozen, unmoving, and limp in my arms. And as I held his body to my heart, screaming for the Lord to bring him back, Jesus wept.

#fiction #symbolic #lgbt catholic #catholocism #short story #original work #original writing #catholic #altar boy #altar server #hussite #ich bin hussite #martin luther #writing

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savedfromsalvation · 6 years

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SO YOU’RE A CHRISTIAN? WHAT FLAVOR?

AN INCOMPLETE LIST OF MODERN CHRISTIAN SECTS AND CULTS:

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Latin Church

Catholic Charismatic Renewal

Blue Army of Our Lady of Fátima

Legion of Mary (active and auxiliary)

International Catholic Conference of Scouting

Cursillo

Worldwide Marriage Encounter

Marian Movement of Priests

Militia Immaculatae

International Alliance of Catholic Knights

Knights of Columbus

Schoenstatt Apostolic Movement

Nocturnal Adoration Societies

Neocatechumenal Way

Couples for Christ

Society of Saint Vincent de Paul

Secular Franciscan Order

Young Christian Workers (JOC)

School of the Cross

Focolare Movement

Christian Life Community

Opus Dei

Pax Romana

Community of Sant'Egidio

Communion and Liberation

Salesian Cooperators Association

Christian Life Movement

Regnum Christi

Our Lady's Rosary Makers

Personal Ordinariate for former Anglicans

Eastern Catholic Churches

Alexandrian Rite

Ethiopian Catholic Church

Coptic Catholic Church

Eritrean Catholic Church

Antiochene Rite

Maronite Catholic Church

Syro-Malankara Catholic Church

Syriac Catholic Church

Armenian Rite

Armenian Catholic Church

Byzantine Rite

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church

Melkite Greek Catholic Church

Romanian Greek Catholic Church

Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church

Hungarian Greek Catholic Church

Slovak Greek Catholic Church

Italo-Albanian Catholic Church

Belarusian Greek Catholic Church

Byzantine Catholic Church of Croatia and Serbia

Georgian Byzantine Catholic Church

Albanian Greek Catholic Church

Bulgarian Greek Catholic Church

Greek Byzantine Catholic Church

Macedonian Greek Catholic Church

Russian Greek Catholic Church

Chaldean Rite

Syro-Malabar Catholic Church

Chaldean Catholic Church

Canonically irregular groups

Society of Saint Pius X

PROTESTANTISM

Baptist churches

Southern Baptist Convention

National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc

Nigerian Baptist Convention

National Missionary Baptist Convention of America

National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.

Baptist Union of Uganda

Baptist Community of Western Congo

Baptist General Convention of Texas

Baptist Convention of Tanzania

Brazilian Baptist Convention

Progressive National Baptist Convention

Council of Baptist Churches in Northeast India

Baptist Bible Fellowship International

American Baptist Churches USA

Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention

Baptist Community of the Congo River

National Primitive Baptist Convention of the U.S.A.

Myanmar Baptist Convention

Cooperative Baptist Fellowship

Baptist General Association of Virginia

Baptist Convention of Kenya

Nagaland Baptist Church Council

Korea Baptist Convention

Samavesam of Telugu Baptist Churches

Orissa Evangelical Baptist Crusade

National Baptist Convention (Brazil)

Church of Christ in Congo–Baptist Community of Congo

Baptist Convention of Malawi

Garo Baptist Convention

Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches

Ghana Baptist Convention – 0.3[21]

Union of Baptist Churches in Rwanda

Conservative Baptist Association of America

National Association of Free Will Baptists

Convention of Visayas and Mindanao of Southern Baptist Churches

Manipur Baptist Convention

Baptist Community in Central Africa

Lutheranism

Evangelical Church in Germany

United Protestants i.e. Lutheran & Reformed

Lutherans

Reformed

Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania

Church of Sweden

United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India

Batak Christian Protestant Church

Church of Denmark

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland

Church of Norway

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Malagasy Lutheran Church

The Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria

Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea

Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa

The Protestant Christian Church

The Indonesian Christian Church

Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia

Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod

Evangelical Free Church of America

Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cameroon

Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Austria

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zimbabwe

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia

Christian Protestant Church in Indonesia

Church of Iceland

Simalungun Protestant Christian Church

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Brazil

Protestant Church of Augsburg Confession of Alsace and Lorraine

Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovakia

Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Hungary

Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church

Methodism

United Methodist Church

African Methodist Episcopal Church

Church of the Nazarene

Methodist Church Nigeria

The Salvation Army

Methodist Church of Southern Africa

Korean Methodist Church

African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

United Methodist Church of Ivory Coast

Free Methodist Church

Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

Methodist Church Ghana

Methodist Church in India

Methodist Church in Kenya

Wesleyan Church

Methodist Church of Great Britain

Methodist Church in Brazil

Calvinism

Reformed Presbyterian

Presbyterian Church of East Africa

Presbyterian Church of Nigeria

Presbyterian Church of Africa

Presbyterian Church in Korea (HapDong)

Presbyterian Church of Korea (TongHap)

National Presbyterian Church in Mexico

Church of Christ in Congo

Presbyterian Community of Congo

Presbyterian Church of Cameroon]

Presbyterian Church (USA)

Presbyterian Church of India

Church of Central Africa Presbyterian

Presbyterian Church of Brazil

Presbyterian Church in Sudan

Presbyterian Church in Cameroon

Presbyterian Church in Korea (HapDongBoSu II.)

Presbyterian Church in Korea (BaekSeok)

Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana

United Church of Christ in the Philippines

Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa

United Church of Canada

Church of Scotland

Presbyterian Church in America

Presbyterian Church of Pakistan

Presbyterian Church in Korea (Koshin)

Korean Presbyterian Church

Presbyterian Church in Rwanda

Uniting Church in Australia

Presbyterian Church in Taiwan

Presbyterian Church in Ireland

Continental Reformed churches

Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar

Protestant Church in Indonesia

United Church in Zambia

Evangelical Church of Cameroon

Swiss Reformed Church

Protestant Church in the Netherlands

Christian Evangelical Church in Timor

Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK)

Christian Evangelical Church in Minahasa

United Church in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands

Protestant Church in Western Indonesia

Evangelical Christian Church in Tanah Papua

Protestant Church of Maluku

Reformed Church in Hungary

Reformed Church in Romania

Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa

Toraja Church

Reformed Church of France

Lesotho Evangelical Church

Evangelical Christian Church in Halmahera

Christian Church of Sumba

Karo Batak Protestant Church

Christian Reformed Church of Nigeria

Reformed Church in Zambia

Evangelical Reformed Church in Angola

Reformed Church in America

Christian Reformed Church in North America

Kalimantan Evangelical Church

Javanese Christian Church

Indonesia Christian Church

Church of Christ in the Sudan Among the Tiv

Church of Lippe

Evangelical Church of Congo

Christian Evangelical Church of Sangihe Talaud

Central Sulawesi Christian Church

Evangelical Reformed Church in Bavaria and Northwestern Germany

Congregationalism

United Church of Christ

Evangelical Congregational Church in Angola

United Congregational Church of Southern Africa

Anabaptism

Mennonites

Schwarzenau Brethren/German Baptists

Amish

Hutterites

Hussites

Moravians

Czechoslovak Hussite Church

Unity of the Brethren

Quakers (Religious Society of Friends)

Modern Protestantism

Pentecostalism

Assemblies of God

Apostolic Church

International Circle of Faith

Fangcheng Fellowship

China Gospel Fellowship

Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee)

International Church of the Foursquare Gospel

Church of God in Christ

Jesus Is Lord Church Worldwide

International Pentecostal Holiness Church

United Pentecostal Church International

The Pentecostal Mission

Christian Congregation of Brazil

True Jesus Church

The Church of Pentecost

Universal Church of the Kingdom of God

Pentecostal Assemblies of the World

Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa

Church of God of Prophecy

Association of Pentecostal Churches of Rwanda

God is Love Pentecostal Church

Nondenominational Evangelicalism

Calvary Chapel

Born Again Movement

Association of Vineyard Churches

Christian and Missionary Alliance

Church of God (Anderson, Indiana)

African Initiated Protestant Churches

Zion Christian Church

Eternal Sacred Order of Cherubim and Seraphim

Kimbanguist Church

Redeemed Christian Church of God

Church of the Lord (Aladura)

Council of African Instituted Churches

Church of Christ Light of the Holy Spirit

African Church of the Holy Spirit

African Israel Church Nineveh

Seventh-day Adventist Church

New Apostolic Church

Lord's Recovery (Watchman Nee)

Lord's Recovery (Witness Lee

Local churches or Church Assembly Hall

Eastern Lightning

The Shouters

Restoration Movement

Churches of Christ

Christian churches and churches of Christ

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Community of Disciples of Christ in Congo

Plymouth Brethren

Anglicanism

Anglican Communion

Church of England

Church of Nigeria

Church of Uganda

Anglican Church of Kenya

Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Sudan

Church of South India

Anglican Church of Australia

Anglican Church of Southern Africa

Anglican Church of Tanzania

Episcopal Church in the United States

Anglican Church of Canada

Church of North India

Anglican Church of Rwanda

Church of the Province of Central Africa

Anglican Church of Burundi

Church in the Province of the West Indies

Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia

Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean

Church of Christ in Congo–Anglican Community of Congo

Church of Pakistan

Church of Ireland

Church of the Province of West Africa

Anglican Church of Melanesia

Episcopal Church in the Philippines

Continuing Anglican movement and independent churches

Traditional Anglican Communion

Anglican Church in North America

Reformed Evangelical Anglican Church of South Africa

Eastern Orthodox Church ( Non-Chalcedonian)

Autocephalous Churches

Russian Orthodox Church

Romanian Orthodox Church

Church of Greece

Serbian Orthodox Church

Bulgarian Orthodox Church

Georgian Orthodox Church

Greek Orthodox Church of Constantinople

Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch

Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria

Orthodox Church in America

Polish Orthodox Church

Albanian Orthodox Church

Church of Cyprus

Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem

Czech and Slovak Orthodox Church

Autonomous churches

Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)

Moldovan Orthodox Church

Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia

Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia

Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric

Estonian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)

Finnish Orthodox Church

Chinese Orthodox Church

Japanese Orthodox Church

Latvian Orthodox Church

Non-universally recognized churches

Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Kyiv Patriarchate)

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Macedonian Orthodox Church

Orthodox Church of Greece (Holy Synod in Resistance)

Old Calendarist Romanian Orthodox Church

Old Calendar Bulgarian Orthodox Church

Orthodox Church in Italy

Montenegrin Orthodox Church

Other separated Orthodox groups

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Old Believers

Greek Old Calendarists

True Orthodox Church

Evangelical Orthodox Church

Oriental Orthodoxy

Autocephalous Churches

Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church

Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria

Armenian Apostolic Church

Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin

Holy See of Cilicia

Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople

Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem

Syriac Orthodox Church

Jacobite Syrian Christian Church

Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church

Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church

Autonomous Churches

French Coptic Orthodox Church

Churches not in communion

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Malabar Independent Syrian Church

British Orthodox Church

Restorationism and Nontrinitarianism

Latter Day Saint movement (Mormonism)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]

Community of Christ

Jehovah's Witnesses

Oneness Pentecostalism

United Pentecostal Church International

Pentecostal Assemblies of the World

Minor Denominations

Iglesia ni Cristo

La Luz del Mundo

Unitarian Universalism

Unitarian Universalist Association

(Unitarian Universalism developed out of Christian traditions but no longer identifies as a Christian denomination.)

Church of Christ, Scientist

Friends of Man

Christadelphians

Family International

Independent Catholicism

Philippine Independent Church

Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association

Brazilian Catholic Apostolic Church

Traditionalist Mexican-American Catholic Church

Old Catholic Church

Polish National Catholic Church

Apostolic Catholic Church

Palmarian Catholic Church

Minor Branches

Church of the East (Nestorianism)

Assyrian Church of the East

Ancient Church of the East

Messianic Judaism

And tell me again why yours is “THE ONE TRUE FAITH!” Laz

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thepastisalreadywritten · 3 years

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The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows commemorates the seven great sorrows, which Mary lived in relation to Her Son, as they are recorded in the Gospels or through Tradition.

Today, we are invited to reflect on Mary's deep suffering:

1. At the prophecy of Simeon:

"You yourself shall be pierced with a sword - so that the thoughts of many hearts may be laid bare." (Luke 2:35)

2. At the flight into Egypt:

"Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt." (Mt 2:13)

3. Having lost the Holy Child at Jerusalem:

"You see that your father and I have been searching for you in sorrow." (Luke 2:48)

4. Meeting Jesus on his way to Calvary;

5. Standing at the foot of the Cross:

"Near the cross of Jesus, there stood His mother." (John 19:25)

6. Jesus being taken from the Cross;

7. At the burial of Christ.

Prior to the Second Vatican Council, there were two feasts devoted to the sorrows of Mary.

The first feast was insitituted in Cologne in 1413 as an expiation for the sins of the iconoclast Hussites.

The second is attributed to the Servite order whose principal devotion are the Seven Sorrows.

It was institued in 1668, though the devotion had been in existence since 1239 - five years after the founding of the order.

#Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows #seven great sorrows

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romancatholicreflections · 6 years

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15th September >> “Our Lady of Sorrows” ~ Daily Reflection on Today’s Gospel Reading for Roman Catholics on the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows.

The title, “Our Lady of Sorrows,” was first given to Our Lady to recall her intense grief during the passion and death of our Lord. Gradually, the scope of this title was not limited to the sacred Passion and was extended to comprise “the seven dolours” or “seven sorrows” of Mary, as foretold by the old prophet Simeon, while the child Jesus was presented in the Jerusalem temple.

This devotion is popular in the Catholic Church, many of whose faithful like to meditate on her Seven Sorrows, and there is a corresponding devotion to the Seven Joys of Mary . In Irish tradition the lamentation “Caoineadh na dtri Muire,” commemorates Mary’s share in the Passion of Jesus. The Seven Sorrows are these:

1. Simeon’s Prophecy about the sword of sorrow (Lk 2:34-35);

2. The Flight of Joseph, Mary and Jesus into Egypt (Mt 2:13);

3. The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple (Lk 2:43-45);

4. Mary Meets Jesus on the Way to Calvary (Lk 23:26);

5. Jesus Dies on the Cross (John 19:25);

6. Mary Receives the Body of Jesus in Her Arms (Mt 27:57);

7. The Body of Jesus is Placed in the Tomb (John 19:40).

The liturgical feast of the Our Lady of Sorrows was proclaimed in Cologne (1413) as a response to the Hussites, under the title: Commemoration of the anguish and sorrow of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Until the 16th century, the feast was celebrated only in Northern Europe. Earlier, in Tuscany (1233), seven young men founded the Servite Order (OSM or “Order of the Servants of Mary”). Five years later, they named the sorrows of Mary under the Cross as the principal devotion of their order. They developed the two most common devotions to Our Lady’s Sorrows, namely the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows and the Black Scapular of the Seven Dolours of Mary.

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messiahtyql924 · 3 years

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6 Flags About Texas

Of the 27 versions of the United States flag, nine flew for only a couple of year, reflecting the rapid enlargement of the nation. Though we have not had a new star since 1960 – Hawaii – we may not be carried out adding stars. Territories Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the united states As Independence Day nears, 24/7 Wall St. is taking a look at how each of these 27 flags got that way. We reviewed websites corresponding to usflagdepot.com and numerous history web sites to find out how every state was added to the Union, thus affixing a brand new star to the flag.

What is the name of India flag? The Union Flag, or Union Jack, is the national flag of the United Kingdom. It is so called because it combines the crosses of the three countries united under one Sovereign - the kingdoms of England and Wales, of Scotland and of Ireland (although since 1921 only Northern Ireland has been part of the United Kingdom).

Black stands for the tip of the oppression of Egyptian people. Papua New Guinea – Birders think of Papua New Guinea they usually think of one factor – birds-of-paradise. And don’t let it be mentioned that the folks of Papua New Guinea don’t know what to lead with.

North Macedonia Flags

The first national hero to steer Venezuela to independence was Francisco de Maranda. He is the revolutionary credited for the design of the Venezuelan flag. Maranda fought each inside Venezuela and abroad in Spain. He began his army journey as a soldier in favor of Spain, whereas he secretly held plans to overthrow their authorities in South America. Eventually, Maranda joined one other nationwide hero of Venezuela, Simón Bolívar, so as to battle the powers of Spain inside Venezuela.

A chook of paradise seems on the flag of Papua New Guinea. According to local folklore, within the early 15th century a camel was captured from a military of Hussites who besieged the town of Plzeň for more than nine months, without success. As a outcome, the camel quickly grew to become an emblem of the city’s strong defenses and was added to the region’s coat of arms in 1433. Only a couple of nations in the world have firearms on their flags.

Democratic Folks's Republic Of Korea

When the nationwide anthem performs before the sport, these folks usually belt out each the Mexican National Anthem and the United States National Anthem in full throat. We supply a comprehensive selection of over 200+ international flags from all over the world. All of these flags are constructed from sturdy nylon to resist the elements and can be found in indoor and outdoor varieties. Outdoor flags function a canvas heading and brass grommets, whereas indoor flags are constructed with a pole hem, material tab, and your alternative of with or with out golden fringe.

• In truth, studying concerning the Spanish flags is a wonderful first step to understanding their origins and sources of nationwide pride.

• The Arab international locations use the same colous for their present of pan-Arabic identification.

• That decreased the number of distinct shades from 527 to 63.

The ruling navy junta replaced Myanmar's erstwhile red-blue flag with the current yellow, green, and red variant after the introduction of a new structure in 2008. Yellow stands for solidarity amongst all ethnic groups, green denotes peace and tranquility, and purple signifies courage and decisiveness. The central five-pointed white star symbolizes the nation consolidated union. The South Korean flag is officially called “Taegukgi,” which means “great polarity.” The base color, white, is the traditional color of the Korean individuals, and signifies peace and purity.

Although they are merely pieces of printed fabric, national flags serve as essential symbols of national pride and identity. For instance, patriotic Americans take satisfaction in the reality that their American Flag must be manufactured properly in the United States. This is as a outcome of the item serves as a symbol of American Exceptionalism.

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wecityguidecom · 4 years

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Charles Bridge (Karluv Most): Oldest Bridge in Prague

Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) is another symbol of Prague and one of the oldest and most impressive old bridges in entire Europe, built-in 1357. There are a couple of bridges in Prague over the Vitava river but Charles Bridge is the most famous one of them. Its original name is Karluv Most, means the bridge of Karluv or Karl. Don't forget to add to see St. Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) in your places to see in Prague list.

St. Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) History

Construction of the bridge started in 1357 by King Charles IV and it took 3 years to finish it. But in some sources claims that the finishing year of the is 1402. Actually there was another old bridge in the exact location of the Charles Bridge (Karluv Most). The Old Judith Bridge which was built between 1158 and 1172 badly damaged by the flood in 1342. A new stone bridge called a Stone Bridge or Prague Bridge at the beginning. But in time its gets a new name "Charles Bridge". Since 1870, everyone calls the bridge with its new name. This bridge was the most important connection between the Prague Castle and Prague Old Town until 1841. Also, a very major and crucial route for trade route of Europe's western and eastern parts. Length of the bridge is 516 meters and almost 10 meters width, its only open for the pedestrian crossing.

Panoramic view of the St. Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) (Source). Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) Statues The most distinguishing feature of the bridge is its statues because there are 30 statues along the pedestrian way on it. You can check all the statues from the list below. The most important ones are the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV and Jonh of Nepomuk who was Czech's most loved and revered saint. Statues on the north side of the bridge Statue of the Madonna attending to St. Bernard Built-in 1709 by the Matej Vaclav and donated by the abbot of the monastery in Osek. Statue of the Madonna, Ss. Dominic and Thomas Aquinas Built-in 1708 by the Matej Vaclav. Expenses sponsored by the Dominicans Convent of St. Gile in the Prague Old Town. The Crucifix and Calvary One of the most historic sculptures on the bridge. Originally built-in 1361 and destroyed by the Hussites in 1419. A new crucifix built-in 1629 but also damaged like the previous one in Thirty Years War. Statue of St. Anne Another design of the Matej Vaclav in 1707. Statue represents the mother of the Virgin Mary as a young girl. Statue of St. Cyril and St. Methodius Designed and built by the Karel Dvorak between 1928 and 1939. You can see a portrait of Saints Cyril and Methodius who were missionaries introduced Christianity to the Slavs. Statue of St. John the Baptist The original statue in here was portraying the baptism of Jesus by the St. Jonh but it replaced with a statue showing the St. John's standing position. Statue of Saints Norbert of Xanten, Wenceslas and Sigismund Josef Max design the statue in 1853 and expenses paid by the Dr. Jeronym Ziedler from Strahov Monatery. Statue of St. John of Nepomuk This one is the oldest statue on the bridge. Its original style was made from clay by the Matthias Rauchmüller based on a wooden model made by the Jan Brokoff. St. John of Nepomuk was thrown to the Vitara river from the bridge and drowned in 1393. Almost every tour cames to this statue and touches it. It is like a tradition. Statue of St. Anthony of Padua This statue designed by Jan Oldrich Mayer in 1707 and the expenses sponsored by the Kristof Morice Withauer a member of Prague Castle. Statue of St. Jude Thaddeus You will see the St. Jude is holding a rod on this statue. It was designed by Jan Oldrich Mayer in 1708, one year later from St. Anthony of Padua's statue. Statue of St. Augustine Jan Bedrich Kohl this statue of St. Augustine while holding a hook and burning heart on his hand in 1708. Statue of St. Cajetan Ferdinan Brokoff designed this statue in 1709. You will the St. Cajetan holding a book and standing before an obelisk. That obelisk represents the Holy Trinity. Also, St. Catejan was the founder of the religious order of Theatins. Statue of St. Philip Benitius The statue built by the Bernard Mandel in 1714 and portrays the St. Philip Benitius. St. Philip Benitiun was the 5th general of the Servites. You can also see the crown of the Pope by his legs. Statuary of St. Vitus St. Vitus was a Roman aristocrat who sacrificed his life on behalf of his faith. Ferdinand Brokoff made the statue of St. Vitus in 1714. Also, there is a St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague Castle where should be seen. Statue of the Holy Savior with Cosmas and Damian This statue shows Jesus with his saints and it was made by the Jan Oldrich Mayer in 1709.

St. Vitus and his lions (Source). Statues on the south side of the bridge Statue of St. Ivo Statue made by the Matthias Braun in 1711. Expenses of the statue paid by the Law Faculty of Charles University in Prague. Statues of saints Barbara, Margaret and Elizabeth Another heritage of the Ferdinand Brokoff from 1707. Statue of the Lamentation of Christ Emanuel Max designed this statue in 1858. You will see Mary Magdalene and Virgin Mary while they are mourning for the death of Christ. Statue of St. Joseph The original statue of St. Joseph was designed in 1706 by the Josep Max and expenses paid by the Josef Bergmann. Statue of St. Francis Xavier The original statue of St. Francis Xavier made by the Ferdinand Brokoff in 1711 and it replaced with its replica by the Cenek Vosmik in 1913. Statue of St. Christopher You can see on this statue a saint holding christ as a boy on his shoulder. Designer of the statue was the Emanuel Max, in the year of 1857. Statue of St. Francis Borgia This statue portrays St. Francis Borgia with two angels. Ferdinand Brokoff commissioned the statue in 1710. Statue of St. Ludmila The origin of the statue doesn't know exactly but it was probably designed by the Matthias Braun around 1730. Statue of St. Francis of Assisi Another sculpture of Emanuel Max. He was designed the statue in 1855 and all the expenses covered by the Frantisek Antonin Kolowrat Liebsteinsky, very long name :) Statue of Saints Vincent Ferrer and Procopius + Bruncvík column One of the most important pieces on the statue which was sculpted by the Ferdinan Brokoff in 1712. You will see St. Vincent on the left side of the statue with a coffin and kneeling penitent sinner by his legs. Don't forget to take look at this one. Statue of St. Nicholas of Tolentino Jan Bedrich Kohl sculpted this statue in 1708 and expenses paid by the Augustinian order. You will see a saint and an angel holding a basket of bread. Statue of St. Luthgard (Dream of St. Luthgard) Another important statue on the Charles Bridge should be seen is the Statue of St. Luthgard. Michael and Ferdinan Brokoff designed the statue in 1710. Statue of St. Adalbert Markus Bernard who was the councillor of Old Town of Prague paid the expenses of this statue. Once more again, Michael and Ferdinand Brokoff designed the statue in 1709. Statues of Saints John of Matha, Felix of Valois, and Ivan This one is the most expensive statue on the bridge and it was designed by the Ferdinand Brokoff in 1714. The statue made to honour the two founders of the Trinitarians. Statue of St. Wenceslas Karel Böhm designed the statue in 1858. You will see the saint is praying while looking to the sky.

The most expensive statue on the Charles Bridge (Source).

Where is Charles Bridge (Karluv Most)?

Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) almost can be seen from anywhere in central Prague. Even today, the bridge is a very central crossing path for the pedestrians. Visiting the Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) is very easy because of its central location. You can take a nice walk from Prague Castle to the west entrance of the bridge. Or the other walking is from the Old Town of Prague and Astronomical Watch Tower to the east entrance of the bridge. The bridge is 7/24 open for visitors without entrance fee or tickets. Malostranské náměstí is the closes tram station on the western side of the bridge and Karlovy lázně on the eastern side.

Nearby Attractions and Places

Walking through Charles Bridge (Karluv Most) would take around 30 to 40 minutes if you take a look at each one of the statues, maybe even more. I'm writing down the top 10 attraction and places close to the bridge that you can visit and see. Clementinum Beer Museum Bedrich Smetana Museum Charles Bridge Museum Old Town Bridge Tower Franz Kafka Museum Karel Zeman Museum Werichova villa Museum Kampa Please share your thoughts and experiences on the comment section about the oldest bridge of the Czech, Charles Bridge (Karluv Most). Also, please feel free to ask questions. Read the full article

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