St. Michael's prayer against evil

St. Michael - Patron Saint of the Langobards

Prayer to St. Michael, the Archangel

St. Michael, the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our protection
against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray.
And do thou,
oh Prince of the Heavenly Host,
by the power of God,
cast into Hell,
Satan and all the other evil spirits
who prowl about the world,
seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.

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‘Neverlake’ (2013) – movie review

‘Neverlake’ is a 2013 Italian movie, apparently made for an English-speaking audience. I ordered it via pay-per-view due to its theme, which I found interesting:

On a trip home to visit her father, Jenny is thrown into a world of mystery, horror and legend when she is called upon by 3000 year old spirits of the Neverlake to help return their lost artifacts and save the lives of missing children.

Actually, the film description for the PPV described “Etruscan spirits.” There is surprisingly little information online about his film, outside of a few reviews… of which I haven’t read, as I usually like to try to relay my interpretation firsthand. I wasn’t able to find out which lake it was filmed at, as the lake reminded me of pictures I have seen of Lake Nemi in Tuscany… a location of many legends and folklore. I think most of the filming was around Arezzo in eastern Tuscany. Lake Nemi is in the west, but this lake was mysterious-looking in any case… looking beautifully gloomy and surrounded by heavy woods.

Some background to the story was a little bit unclear. The main protagonist was Jenny.. a sixteen year old girl, of apparently Tuscan birth and heritage, who had been sent to live with an aunt in England at a young age, and was currently going to school in New York City. The movie begins with Jenny on the last leg of her trip to spent the Summer with her father in Arezzo, which is evidently in a rural hilly part of Tuscany, dotted with ancient villages.

This is a difficult movie to review because it was a steady advance of strange experiences, but perhaps none of them standing out in particular. Basically, in one form or another, ancient Etruscan spirits of “the Lake of Idols” seem to be sending her clues regarding.. something. Throughout the film, Jenny’s poetry relay some subtle messages.

Just the theme of Etruscan mythology, combined with the gloomy environment, set an interesting mood. Jenny’s father, apparently a doctor and amateur archeologist, was working on a project regarding ancient Etruscan artifacts. On his wall was a painting of Etruscans engaging in a ritual by that particular lake.. of which they believed had supernatural healing properties. He told Jenny that the painting was just an interpretation by the artist of how they may have held rituals on the lake. I don’t know if there really is such a painting of this theme, or if another painting was used to fit the story. The mysterious terrain of the the land, along with the father and his wife’s unusual actions, results in one strongly getting the impression that there are some secrets being kept. Jenny is told that her mother had passed away.

Soon Jenny meets children from a nearby home for orphaned children suffering from various ailments. This home/facility was fairly large and very old, constructed of stone walls and tiled roofs. It sat alone amidst the natural landscape. Jenny befriends them and reads them stories.. for example, writings of Shakespeare. They begin to trust her, and allow her into their world.

Jenny’s father had removed 2,600 to 3,000 year old statues from the lake, which ties into the main plot. Jenny begins to have supernatural experiences, including strange dreams about the lake. I don’t think I would be giving away too much by saying that the “Souls of the Lake” were unhappy with the removal of their statues (figurines). He had been working on his “project” for twenty years.

Etruscan temple

I think part of the theme of this film—for me at least—was a folk-pagan concept of reconnecting with one’s ancestors… with a distinction between a true “folk connection,” and one of mere usury. One curious element in the film was one particular character who appeared perhaps dangerous initially, and another who appeared positive initially… well, it turned out to be quite different…

Although this movie moved along with a slow advance—although I found it to be very relaxing and an escape—the ending ties together a large number of loose ends. The film goes from mystery, to horror, to tearjerker at the end. Many things don’t make sense until the dramatic ending scenes. I wouldn’t say that this movie was an absolute “thriller.” It was suspenseful, an escape into the spiritual, and delving into the sensitive theme of child abuse. I guess one could say that it was a common theme of “good vs. evil”… with the adults being the “evil” force… and with the children receiving help from ancestral spirits when they asked for it.

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'Libira Me' - Roman Catholic chant

Deliver me, O Lord, from death eternal on that fearful day,
 
When the heavens and the earth shall be moved,
 
When thou shalt come to judge the world by fire.
 
I am made to tremble, and I fear, till the judgment be upon us, and the coming wrath,
 
When the heavens and the earth shall be moved.
 
That day, day of wrath, calamity, and misery, day of great and exceeding bitterness,
 
When thou shalt come to judge the world by fire.
 
Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord: and let light perpetual shine upon them.


Libira Me (Wikipedia)

Líbera me ("Deliver me") is a Roman Catholic responsory that is sung in the Office of the Dead and at the absolution of the dead, a service of prayers for the dead said beside the coffin immediately after the Requiem Mass and before burial. The text of Libera Me asks God to have mercy upon the deceased person at the Last Judgment.

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'Rachel the Wicked' (an original new poem)

'Rachel the Wicked'

So many thought of you in a negative light,
As you so often did act without care.
Still for me, I chose to look deeper,
And saw a castle in the air.

I'll never forget the tall brown-eyed Tuscan beauty,
Who left many a passerby in a momentary stun.
And whose long hair seemed to magically change color,
Dark in the dim, and blondish in the sun.

For me, I'll always know in my heart and mind,
No matter if I'm the only one who will believe.
That you possessed some sacred values and ethics,
Of which some of your critics lacked the character to even conceive.

My dream of you this week was entirely unexpected,
Including our mystical happy ending.
I know that it won't happen in this life,
But it was still precious, even in pretending.

In what vein should I remember you,
Now that its been a good many years since you decided to leave this world?
I proclaim here and now, as neither devil nor angel,
But rather as a matron spirit of fire and aspired dreams, waiting to be unfurled.

--Camunlynx

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Cernic Rite

The Cernic tradition was an ancient religion native to mainly ancient Gaul, Alpine Germany, and Cisalpine Gaul; and which also seemed to exist in Iberia, some parts of Scandinavia, and perhaps elsewhere.

CERNUNNOS

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cernunnos

Cernunnos (also Cernenus and Cern) is a Celtic god whose representations were widespread in the ancient Celtic lands of western Europe. Cernunnos is associated with horned male animals, especially stags and the ram-horned snake; this and other attributes associate him with produce and fertility.

Everything known about this deity comes from two inscriptions from France and one from Germany.

Evidence

A rock carving of Cernunnos in the National park of Naquane, Italy.[4]
Cernunnos was proposed to have been identified as the illustration on the Snake-witch picture stone, which shows a possibly horned figure holding snakes in his/her hands, from Gotland, Sweden.[citation needed]

Archaeological sources such as inscriptions and depictions from Gaul and Northern Italy (Gallia Cisalpina) have been used to define Cernunnos.


[Music: 'Lacrimae Lugus' by Crystalmoors

"Celtic/Pagan Black Metal band from Cantabria, Spain" (YouTube user BlackDeath)

http://www.myspace.com/crystalmoors
http://www.fotolog.com/crystalmoors ]

Gallia Cisalpina V: Celto-Alpine Spirit

CELTIC POLYTHEISM

Celtic polytheism, sometimes known as Celtic paganism, refers to the religious beliefs and practices of the ancient Celtic peoples of Western Europe prior to Christianization.

Celtic polytheism was animistic, believing in spirits existing in natural objects such as trees and rocks. Religious beliefs and practices of the Celts varied throughout the different Celtic lands, which included Ireland, Britain, Celtiberia, Gaul, areas along the Danube river, and Galatia; however there were commonalities shared by all.

CELTIC MYTHOLOGY

Celtic mythology is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, apparently the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure.

Among Celts in close contact with Ancient Rome, such as the Gauls and Celtiberians, their mythology did not survive the Roman empire, their subsequent conversion to Christianity, and the loss of their Celtic languages.

[Music: 'Celtic Requiem Chant' by Elliot Simons; different than the 'Celtic Requiem']