O, Silver Star

"Hail Sophia, Mother of all Gods." Faith blog. Sophian Witch. Devotee of Lady Sophia, Mother Eve, the Magdalene and Celtic Paganism.

[rhosyn-o-magdalene]

Stuff About Me

Disclaimer: This is getting to be an old blog and during that time my spiritual path has taken many turns from Gnostic Christian to Filianist to Eclectic Pagan. Posts from the past might be very different from what my beliefs are today, including both religious and political.

What Am I (Currently)?

My name is Rose. For simplicity, I refer to myself as either a Sophian Witch or Déanic Pagan. My path is a bit of an eclectic mix of my religious journey so far, I synchronise what I've learned as a Gnostic, a Wiccan, a Filianist and so on but would not label myself as either of those anymore as I don't feel fully aligned with any of them.

What's a Sophian?

A Sophian is a devotee of the Divine Sophia, aka Holy Wisdom. A Sophian views Wisdom as the Ultimate face of God. There are many different versions of Sophia, from Platoism to Gnosticism to certain branches of Christianity and so on. I personally worship the TrinoSophia, or Sophian Trinity, as I believe was revealed in the Nag Hammadi texts. This being Barbelo, Sophia and Zoe.

What does Déanic mean?

While I'm not longer a Filianist, I do still consider myself Déanic. A Déanist is someone who worships the Ultimate God as the Divine Feminine. The Supreme Goddess who created all without the need for a male counterpart or Father God - Déa being the feminine Latin word for God. However, while some Déanists and most Filianists worship an exclusively feminine deity(ies), a few like myself believe there are 'lesser' gods and other entities who are children of Déa but higher than humans and some of those can be masculine or non-binary. I worship the Goddess as the alpha but also have a place for the divine masculine, not as Her equal but still worthy of respect and devotion.

Where does the Pagan come in?

It feels like the most simple and therefore truest label for me to identify with. Not all Déanists are Pagan as many prefer to mainly see Déa as the Creator but above rather than within Her creation. Personally I see Her as both within and beyond (panentheism). The Mother created and watches over us but the Daughter walks with all creation as both Princess of the World and Queen of Heaven. The other gods I worship too feel very much a part of creation. I love nature, I love animals and for me no church or temple can compare to the sense of divinity I find when just walking through the forests or gazing at the moon. And connecting my spirit to all that's around me makes me feel complete in a way Abrahamic-like theism cannot compare.

What is your pantheon?

First and foremost, I am a devotee of the Lady Sophia; divine wisdom. I worship Her in Her threefold form as I believe was revealed in the Gnostic scriptures and what I made sense of through the lense of the Filianic trinity. That being She is, in Three modes:

The Mother (Sophia, The Creatrix)

The Daughter (Zoe, whose name means Life)

The Absolute Deity / "Dark Mother" (Barbelo)

I also invoke the Seven Great Ladies, who in Filianism are known as the Seven Janyati. These are the Seven Powers that reflect the highest aspects of Déa. I use their Greek names; Theia, Phoebe, Nike, Metis, Themis, Tethys and Rhea.

For the divine masculine, I worship the Horned God. Not as Sophia's consort or equal, but one of Her most honoured children or "emanations" as both male and female and other entities all came from Her. My preferred names and forms for him tends to be Cernonnus and Gwyn ap Nudd, Celtic being my most direct ancestry. If Sophia were to be seen as a Queen, then my Lord wouldn't be Her king consort but more a loyal Knight in Her service or governing Prince.

Sophia is much more the Déanic part of my identity, and while I do connect with Her and other goddesses via nature, Cernunnos is much more the 'Pagan' side of me, being Lord of the forests and the glen.

I also invoke and honour Mary Magdalene as my Hera (a Filianic term for an ascended human soul). I believe She was Jesus' most enlightened disciple and an avatar of Zoe Sophia, the divine spark, fully realised in woman form. I worship Sophia and Magdalene as the Divine image of Mother and Child.

I also work with the Sovereignty Goddesses of the Brythonic Celtic pantheon, namely; Branwen, Cerridwen, Rhiannon, Arianrhod, Blodeuwedd, Sulis, Morgan le Fay and the Cailleach.

What is your scripture?

I don't see any religious text as the definitive Word of God. I believe they all have been written by people who felt God in their hearts through their own interpretations and some I connect and find wisdom with, others I don't. I try to read all with an open mind.

Both the Gnostic texts and the Clear Recital (the Filianic Scriptures) are probably the closest to my heart and influence my path but I don't hold either to be without error.

What are your current political beliefs?

I'm very much a proud "wokey leftist", support complete separation of Church and State, am pro LGBTQ (as well as being a lesbian myself), fully support every person's right to bodily autonomy. Not to say I won't call out BS on the left by certain individuals where I see it.

Enjoy my blog!

[rhosyn-o-magdalene]

ChristoPagans: "Why do you worship Eve?"

Because why not?

If I was worshipping Mary, you wouldn't question why I was worshipping the "Mother of God".

If I was worshipping Lilith, you wouldn't question why I was worshipping the "Mother of Demons".

Why should the Mother of the Living, the Mother of Humanity, not be venerated just as much? She is specifically for us. That is Our Mother.

[fierysword]

It saddens me that we live in a world where so many people are surprised at the veneration of the Mother of All Living

[sacredlitany]

Catholics get the whole “ you’re worshiping Mary! ” so y’know. You’re wrong there.

[rhosyn-o-magdalene]

I was referring to people who worship Mary in a ChristoPagan or Folk Catholic way, not orthodox Catholics.

Edit as it won't let me reblog:

My original post was referring to the Pagan community questioning my worship of Eve the First Mother when they're not bothered about anyone worshipping Lilith or Mary. It wasn't directed at Protestants who are anti-Mary veneration or any divine feminine imagery. I fully expect them and other mainstream Christians to disrespect Eve, it's the Pagans and Witches who baffle me when they're usually all for reclaiming divine feminine figures who have been done dirty.

[rhosyn-o-magdalene]

silly question you wouldn't happen to be on tiktok would you- your name and handle is almost exactly the same as a mother eve devotee on there, who's also in a server I'm in lol

That would be me, I suspect. Very few Eve devotees out there 😅 👋

[wildwoodpriory]

Season of Fire and Rose 🌹 🔥

[thecollectibles]

Virgo by Artem Chebokha

[rhosyn-o-magdalene]

How would you personally describe the relationship between Sophia and Virgin Mary?

I don't work with the VM so I don't really feel equipped to say.

[iscariotapologist]

As truly as God is our Father, so truly God is our Mother.

Julian of Norwich, trans. Fr. John-Julian, OJN

[gingersnaptaff]

Do you ever think about the fact that in Arthurian myth, specifically in Culhwch ac Olwen, Gwyn ap Nudd's just hanging out on the sidelines, drinking mimosas, watching as Arthur and this coterie of superpowered knights try and grab what accounts to a barber's shop off of a transfigured boar? At the same time, his brother is a lover of Queen Guinevere AND is the dad of the first acknowledged King of Gwynedd.

[sophideonprotector]

‘i think you cannot root out love entirely. i think where there has been love, there will always be embers, as the remains of a bonfire outlast the flame.’

gwyn ap nudd —the honorable

back to the homepage

[bythistleandthorn]

Been thinking about Mhara Starling's exploration of Gwyn ap Nudd a lot lately.

"... otherness has always been associated with all things fairy, and therefore it is no surprise to me that many Gwyn devotees I have met over the years have been marginalized individuals or those who feel like they do not fit in this world. Neurodivergent people, women, and queer people have been the majority of those who revere this otherworldly god today ... it is almost as though he has opened his arms and said, "So long as the world makes you feel othered, you are under my domain." "

Just... the way this rings so true for me. The way he has helped me embrace my Otherness, my strangeness, the untamed and ugly, truly wild parts of myself. I devote my transition to him, in his Strange and Liminal nature. He's been such a consistent companion to me for so many years, and I genuinely do not think I would be here, much less in this form, without him.

Diolch, Gwyn ap Nudd.

[of-loreandlegend]

Gwyn ap Nudd.

Oh my, Gwyn. I have a lot of feeling about Gwyn ap Nudd; we have a complex relationship.

Gwyn is associated with many things. The Wild Hunt. The Welsh Otherworld, Annwn. King of the Welsh Fair Folk, the Tylwyth Teg. Gwyn son of Nudd is a busy, busy man. He also has a rather illustrious family tree. His father Lludd (or Nudd, as he’s known here) is the son of Beli Mawr, who is an ancester figure in Welsh mythology. Through his father’s side of the family, Gwyn finds himself related to Caswallawn (a British chief who led a defense of Britain against Caeser) and Arianrhod, the sister of the (in)famous Gwydion, giving him ties to the House of Dôn. His own siblings include Edern and Creiddylad.

He shows up in the early Arthurian story “Culhwch and Olwen”, where he’s included in the very very very long list of warriors and heroes that Culhwch takes with him on his quest to win Olwen’s hand in marriage. And when I say long, i mean long; it takes up about four pages of my copy of the Mabinogion. He has two roles in this story. One is as part of Arthur’s retinue to hunt the boar Twrch Trwyth in order to get the comb and scissors off of the animal’s head for Olwen’s father.

…Yeah, that is kind of weird. 

His other little part in this story is when he abducts his sister (and sometimes lover, apparently) Creiddylad from the knight she’s engaged to. Why? I don’t know, maybe Gwyn thought Gwythyr ap Greidol was a dick or something. anyway, Gwythyr went and challenged Gwyn to a fight to win his lady back; Gwyn won and promptly captured Gwythyr’s host. Then he did something really dickish; he killed Nwython, one of Gwythyr’s buddies, and forced his son, Cyledyr Wyllt, to eat his own father’s heart which drove him mad. This was Arthur’s point where he said, “Enough is enough” and ordered that Gwyn set his captives free. Then he decreed that Creiddylad should stay with her daddy dear and Gwyn and Gwythyr could have at each other every May Day until Judgement Day for her honour. Whoever triumphs on Judgement Day, Creiddylad hangs with them. Some people see this as a version of Calan Haf, or a variation of the Holly King myth.

After that, Gwyn doesn’t appear in the Mabinogion but he does show up in the Black Book of Carmarthen, where he meets Gwyddno Garanhir and basically tells him about all the stuff he does on the battlefield and how he’s a psychopomp who picks up the souls of fallen warriors. 

I have been I have been where the soldiers of Britain were slain From the east to the north I am the escort of the grave. I have been where the soldiers of Britain were slain. From the east to the south I am alive, they in death!

His role of a psychopomp also shows up in his connection to the Wild Hunt. The barking of his dogs was seen as a portent of death in Welsh folklore, much like a bean sidhe’s wailing in Irish folklore.

It’s only later on that he becomes associated with the Tylwyth Teg. He’s also associated with Glastonbury Tor, at least until he and his retinue were banished with holy water. The tor is also associated with King Arthur; make of that what you will. He’s referenced by Dafydd ap Gwylim in his poem “The Owl”, or Y Dylluan

Piercingly she shrieked: I recognise her form, she is the bird of Gwyn ap Nudd Crazy Owl that sings to the robbers, misfortune on her tongue and on her tune

Uai'n ffraeth, adwaen ei ffriw; Edn i Gwyn ap Nudd ydyw Wyll ffladr a gan i'r lladron, Anffawd i'w thafawd a'i thon

Dafydd doesn’t seem to like owls much. He also mentions Gwyn in other poems, calling him a trickster of men with his blackened face, referring to Gwyn’s habit of painting his face black (yeah, I’m not sure why; maybe he thought it was scary), and calling his talaith a “nation of the wind.”

Gwyn’s name means “white, fair” and shares a root with the name Gwenhwyfar, the original version of Guinevere.

 His appearances in modern culture seem mainly limited to his role as the hunter; he doesn’t show up as much as you think. Which is a shame.

I haven’t even scratched the surface of how much I love Gwyn.

[ohholydyke]

“Who’s the patron saint of bad bitches is that like Mary Magdalene or something?” - My agnostic non church going former Protestant girlfriend who is so supportive but so confused by my Catholicism

[clovers-practice]

yes!!! Yes!!! Yes!!

[classic-art-favourites]

Crucifixion with the Virgin, Saint John and Saint Mary Magdalene by Anthony van Dyck, 1617-1619.

[rhosyn-o-magdalene]

Mary Magdalene: Jesus has had to go do some Messiah things, which means I'm in charge, so listen up you little shits!

Mary Magdalene: Not you, John the Beloved, you're an angel and we're glad you're here.

[thehelperwitch]

Every time the Bible says Jesus "rebuked" the Apostles, I wonder if that's just bible slang for telling them to stfu and stop being dumbasses.

[mawmenny]

[vitterdotter]

no more divine feminine/masculine as repackaged gender roles, no more crystals to cure cancer, no more higher self instead of looking at yourself, no more starseeds, no more fear mongering around protection magic, no more calling toxicity "energy vampirism", no more applying new age terms to folk practices, no more anthropomorphizing spirits, no more