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Post by River S on Aug 20, 2016 19:45:29 GMT
Hello! I've been a bit of a lurker here, until I finally decided to join and post! I had inquired about the calendar year previously on the Facebook Filianic Prayer Group. I was able to find an answer as to why the number for the published Filianic Calendars are 3333 and so on, but since that number comes from an event in another branch of the faith (Chelouranya, I think it was?), one I don't really have any religious connection with, I was wondering how to merge the calendar with a year date. I do celebrate some of the festivals of the year - working on observing more of them and seeing how it works out - but it feels like I'm trying to sever them from the year, like I'm just ignoring the issue instead of addressing it. But I don't know that I still want to use the year date and month names from a different branch of the faith that I don't really associate with in matters of thealogy. So what would be everyone's advice on how to solve this? Am I just looking at it oddly and I shouldn't be overthinking it like this?  |
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Post by david on Aug 24, 2016 16:21:46 GMT
Rebekah, the calendar I use is that of Lux Madriana, which was the original inspiration for the forum. They claimed to have a hereditary tradition, including a sacred calendar. It was not part of their tradition to number the years for this calendar, but, when they started publishing, they decided they needed to. They at first tried numbering the years from the manifestations at Lourdes, and then tried numbering the years of the Iron Age, by which method, the present year will be 5118.
David. |
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Post by racemochridhe on Aug 28, 2016 12:33:58 GMT
Rebekah,
By way of disclaimer, I am deeply influenced by/attracted to the Aristasian/Chelouranyan branch of the faith, so I am naturally not discomfited by this issue the way that you are. If the Aristasian years are genuinely troublesome to you, though, David's suggestion of following the Iron Age dating of the Madrians is, I think, a good alternative; it is rather similar to the difference between Christian dating from the birth of Jesus and Jewish dating from the creation of the world. That being said, the year-dating of all religious calendars (not their other aspects, but the year-dating) is somewhat arbitrary. Why do Muslims date from the Hijra, and not the year of the Qur'an's first revelation, or from the cleansing of the Kaba, or some other event? That's just how it fell out. In that sense, I don't think you need trouble yourself over the year; one system is as good as another.
The one caveat I would offer to this is that I worry a great deal about the fragmentation of our tradition. Different groups have somewhat different teachings and perspectives on different points but, as the Chapel's literature frequently points out, Déanism/Filianism is not a religion where these differences need become hard and fast denominational lines. Unfortunately, I think the Christian background of many converts has led them to feel that they need to separate very distinctively from forms of the faith that do not appeal to them, leading them to rename and rewrite a lot of material. The result is a sense of alienation between members of a community who all, ultimately, share the same core belief, an inhibition of clear communication between us, and a lack of a united front in respect of new seekers researching the faith, leading one already very small and fragile community to take on the appearance of being two or three even smaller and therefore more marginal ones. For these reasons, I would encourage you to consider at least the month names, if not the year-dating also, not as coming from another branch of the faith that you don't have any religious connection with, but rather as a symbol of unity between all of us who, despite our differences in interpretation, share a common devotion to Our Mother God, and strive to live by the teachings of Our Lady as presented in the same scriptures. There are few enough of us as it is, without building any more fences than we have to.
Yours in Dea,
Race
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Post by River S on Sept 4, 2016 20:34:05 GMT
Rebekah, the calendar I use is that of Lux Madriana, which was the original inspiration for the forum. They claimed to have a hereditary tradition, including a sacred calendar. It was not part of their tradition to number the years for this calendar, but, when they started publishing, they decided they needed to. They at first tried numbering the years from the manifestations at Lourdes, and then tried numbering the years of the Iron Age, by which method, the present year will be 5118.
David. I had not heard of this one! Indeed! This is why I need to stay connected with other members of the faith, to help remind me of these things. Thank you very much for your perspective. |
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