Wise bones of mighty mages trace echoed runes, des'prate planets race to ope' the the tow'ring Gothic gates: Chang'd is humanity's dread fate. --from a chant Copyright 2002 Jon Ryner "Pointed or Christian Architecture has far higher claims in our admiration than mere beauty or antiquity; the former may be regarded as a matter of opinion, the latter, in the abstract, is no proof of excellence, but in it alone we find the faith of Christianity embodied, and its practices illustrated." -- A. W. N. Pugin
The fifth stream is Gothdom. The full flowering of the Catholic Church in the West occurred in the Gothic period. The cathedrals rose, while the magical practices of the Pagans were codified, worked into the Christian system, and used to teach the eternal truths to the masses. The more modern Goth fascination with death also is important, both in its instructive capacity of the memento morti and because of the details of how the Anglican Church crippled the people when it took away the Requiem Masses and other aids for the dead, without providing any alternatives.
Please note: If you're interested in Gothic architecture and the meaning of its symbolism, you can visit our Dark Nature page or read read a number of chapters about Gothic archicture and its iniatory rituals by Hank Harrison by clicking to the appropriate links on our Site History. They're under March 20th, 7th, 6th, 5th, and 4th of 2003. Happy hunting!
Gothic children of the night, a thousand welcomes! Our hearts are gladdened that you found a path to join us.
There are some people who argue that Christianity is as far from Goth as one can get. Here are some arguments why this is not necessarily so:
1) The cult of saints, most notably of their relics. Interestingly, many Uncorruptibles (saints whose bodies were miraculously preserved at death and did not decay) exhibited vampiric characteristics. St. Olaf's body even grew hair and nails and seemed quite fresh!
2) "Party Jesus" "For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil. The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children." Matthew 11:18-19 & Luke 7:33-35
3) The eschatological nature (the idea that the end of the world was immanent) of the early Church (and ours!), which is closely connected with #2.
4) "Warring Jesus": "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword." Matthew 10:34, Luke 12:51 "But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me." Luke 19:27
5) The importance of blood to the Catholic faith: most notably the necessity of Jesus as a blood sacrifice (prefigured in the Jewish animal sacrifices), and drinking it at Communion.
6) the innumerable aspects and practices of Pagan religions which were grafted onto Christianity.
7) The emphasis on the importance of death as a teaching tool for intelligent choices while alive (a hallmark of intellectual gothdom).
8) The great emphasis of the Church on creating beautiful art for its use in all countries and climes. After all, this is where the Gothic style, now so commonly copied by Alchemy Gothic, etc., originated! ;)
9) The communal aspect of the Church, so infrequently found today.
10) The Dark Night of the Soul concept, popularized by St. John of the Cross. "Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant, who walks in darkness and has no light, yet trusts in the name of the Lord and relies upon his God?"--Isaiah 50:10. Check out our page about the dark side of Gothic cathedral building here!
The Avalonian Catholic Church (Remove nospam to reply.) P.O. Box 0096 Clinton, IA 52733-0096 U.S.A.