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| ONE OF THE BEST VINTAGES! |
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| DON'T YOU THINK WE NEED SOME WITCHES BREW…... |
Halloween History of Witches
One of the more enduring symbols of Halloween, horror and folklore is that of the Witch. Ugly and evil, they are shown flying on their broomsticks, or stirring their cauldrons.
Witches were not always thought of as evil or ugly. In ancient times, witches could be healers or wise women of the community. But as Christianity spread, they were often condemned because their power supposedly came from somewhere other than God.
Later, accusations of witchcraft often were used as a way to keep talented, intelligent women from threatening the male supremacy of the day. They also could be used to make people toe the line with regard to community standards. Anyone who was thought of as different or rebellious could be accused. Thus men were often accused as much as women.
The focus of witchcraft on medieval women can be seen in what have becomes the symbols of witchcraft: the broom, the cauldron (pot) and the cat. All of these are associated with the household and women’s work. Not surprisingly, these have also become strong symbols in modern Halloween and horror literature.
ACTUALLY SOME OF THESE SPELLS COULD WORK IN TODAYS WORLD!!
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The Salem Witch Trials of 1692
In January of 1692, the daughter and niece of Reverend Samuel Parris of Salem Village became ill. William Griggs, the village doctor, was called in when they failed to improve. His diagnosis of bewitchment put into motion the forces that would ultimately result in the hanging deaths of nineteen men and women. In addition, one man was crushed to death; several others died in prison, and the lives of many were irrevocably changed.To understand the events of the Salem witch trials, it is necessary to examine the times in which accusations of witchcraft occurred. There were the ordinary stresses of 17th-century life in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. A strong belief in the devil, factions among Salem Village families and rivalry with nearby Salem Town combined with a recent small pox epidemic and the threat of attack by warring tribes created a fertile ground for fear and suspicion. Soon, prisons were filled with more than 150 men and women from towns surrounding Salem; their names had been "cried out" by tormented young girls as the cause of their pain. All would await trial for a crime punishable by death in 17th-century New England - the practice of witchcraft.
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| HOLY CANDLES……...SPA DAY WITCHES STYLE! |
ANCIENT ORIGINS OF HALLOWEEN
Halloween’s origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31 they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.
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| BOY, SHE STAYED TOO LONG AT THE PARTY |
It was the biggest and most significant holiday of the Celtic year. The Celts believed that at the time of Samhain, more so than any other time of the year, the ghosts of the dead were able to mingle with the living, because at Samhain the souls of those who had died during the year traveled into the otherworld. People gathered to sacrifice animals, fruits, and vegetables. They also lit bonfires in honor of the dead, to aid them on their journey, and to keep them away from the living. On that day all manner of beings were abroad: ghosts, fairies, and demons--all part of the dark and dread.
In terms of spreading Christianity, this was a brilliant concept and it became a basic approach used in Catholic missionary work. Church holy days were purposely set to coincide with native holy days. Christmas, for instance, was assigned the arbitrary date of December 25th because it corresponded with the mid-winter celebration of many peoples. Likewise, St. John's Day was set on the summer solstice.
Samhain, with its emphasis on the supernatural, was decidedly pagan. While missionaries identified their holy days with those observed by the Celts, they branded the earlier religion's supernatural deities as evil, and associated them with the devil. As representatives of the rival religion, Druids were considered evil worshippers of devilish or demonic gods and spirits. The Celtic underworld inevitably became identified with the Christian Hell.
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Do you know why we carve jack-o’-lanterns on Halloween? The origins of this curious tradition actually date back hundreds of years, to the early Puritan settlers in the American colonies. The Puritans believed that every Halloween, the Devil would enchant the pumpkins’ faces so that they would come to life and say complimentary things about the legs of all the Puritan men, such as, “Nice legs. Very muscular,” and “Your legs are tremendous!” The man who got the most leg-based compliments from the jack-o’-lanterns would then be forced to spend Halloween in jail.
To this day, we still carve faces into pumpkins on Halloween to keep the Puritans’ tradition alive! The custom of trick-or-treating can be traced back to the early religious beliefs of the Puritan settlers living in colonial America. According to Puritan lore, every Halloween, the Devil would knock on your door. When you answered, he would speak the foul words of a hellish enchantment and place an eternal curse on your household. To prevent this, Puritan families would wait by the door with armfuls of garbage so that when the Devil came and knocked on their door, they could stuff all the garbage into his mouth before he had time to utter the curse.
Centuries later, we still observe this tradition, though the garbage has been replaced with candy and the Devil has been replaced with children.
Have you ever wondered why we wear costumes every Halloween? The answer may surprise you! This longstanding tradition first began with the early Puritan settlers during colonial times. The Puritans believed that every Halloween night, the Devil would roam the streets with a spray bottle full of water and spray everyone he saw right in the face. The only people that the Devil wouldn’t spray in the face were witches, because witches are servants of the Devil and he thinks they’re awesome. In order to avoid getting spritzed in the face with water from the Devil’s spray bottle, the Puritans would all dress up as witches on Halloween night so that the Devil wouldn’t know which faces to spray and which faces to leave dry.
Even after all these years, we still keep this tradition alive by roaming the streets on Halloween night dressed as witches, ghosts, and other servants of the Devil in order to confuse Lucifer, should he ever try to spritz us in the face with water.
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| INDIAN PRINCESS AND FRIEND |
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| WHAT IS HALLOWEEN WITHOUT A POTION OR TWO! |
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| DO YOU THNK THESE COSTUMES COULD BE OUR ALTER EGO'S! |
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| I JUST CAN'T GET AWAY FROM THIS PSYCHO…. |
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WHEN MEN WERE MEN AND WORE SKIRTS!
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| BRING ON THE WINE, WINE AND MORE WINE…. |
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| WHY WOULD ANYONE NOT LIKE HALLOWEEN…..?? |
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WHAT'S YOUR POISON, FOLKS…..
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| CHEERS…... |
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