Balor goes to Rome

Among the most familiar symbols of Ireland, besides the harp or shamrock, it is reasonable enough to think of the Celtic Cross as quintessential. To many it brings to mind the early Christian Ireland with her saints and holy hermits finding the divine in nature as did their pagan forbears before them, a time of transition where the new faith, at war with a long held paganism, was being coloured uniquely by it's enemy. The end product of this conflict was a Christianity that in many ways compromised in order to convert and, in doing so, took on a distinctly pagan outlook.

The Celtic Cross is a perfect example of this compromise whereby an ancient pagan symbol is assimilated into the symbology of Christianity and used as a means to convert the native beliefs while at the same time paganising the interloping Christianity. A hint at this process is evidenced in the fanciful belief that the cross was invented by Saint Patrick whereby he combined the pagan symbol of the sun to the cross to impress the notion that the power of the cross was like that of the life giving sun. This is an echo of the fact that the cross was already a solar symbol to us sun worshipping pagan Irish as well as to most of the pagan world, marking out the seasonal festivals and it was employed in the Christianisation of the island.

As a pagan symbol, It gave rise to the symbolism of the wheel and the sun-god as a great chariot rider coursing the heavens and descending into the underworld at night. Many of the great kings of Irish mythology are in fact expressions of the sun with names like Eochaid, meaning Horseman, being among the most popular in the royal lines. A fine example of a the Solar God-King can be seen in Fearghus Mac Róich whose name translates as 'Male Vigour, son of Great Horse'. Such a widespread symbol, that no doubt loomed large in the minds of the whole society, was a perfect means to facilitate their conversion to the beliefs of the church.

The colour that pagan Europe actually lent to the church is still very much in evidence today and some fairly impressive solar symbolism can actually be found at the very heart of the Catholic church, St. Peter's Square in the Vatican, which takes the form of a great solar wheel intersected by eight spokes. This is all topped off by an obelisk, a phallic solar symbol, at the centre of the wheel! Fairly heathen stuff for auld Pope Benny and his bishops eh? What next... human sacrifice? Oh no hang on a minute, haven't they done that already with the witch hunts and the burning of heretics? Yes, I thought so. My mistake.

Anyway, here's a picture of the temple of the sun in Rome... Sorry, I mean St. Peter's square, Vatican City.