Fuzzy
One by Four by Nine
I just wanted to expand on this a little more. The transformation ofNeverstop said:
"pagan=country dweller" into "pagan=different religion" came about
from the spread of Christianity through the Roman Empire through the
cities first. More specifically, through the political and business classes
who sought to curry political favor by adhering to what was becoming the
de facto state religion. Constantine set up several pro-Christian policies,
but it's disputed whether he himself was Christian or just Christian-friendly.
His successor, Julian the Apostate, tried to revive paganism, but many of
his supporters didn't care one way or another. Julian's successor, Jovian,
began the restoration and solidifying of Christianity as the Imperial
religion, and went so far as to raze the pagan or Hellenic temples.
All4one said:
The Druids saw Samhain as the last of three harvest times (running from
August to late October), and Samhain, being the last, was a very important
one. This was the harvest where you figured out if you'd have enough
food to last through the winter, and what animals you'd have to slaughter
to make sure there was enough feed for the rest of your herd. So, yes,
it's pretty appropriate to refer to it as a "harvest day" or "harvest festival,"
since it was the harvest that most directly let one survive the coming winter.
"Thanksgiving," meanwhile, is dependent on when and where in history you
want to look. The American Pilgrim Thanksgiving celebration took place
in late October/early November, and was a celebration of the first
successful harvest by the Pilgrims. A timeline of Thanksgiving celebrations
in America is available here:
http://www.thanksgiving.org/2us.html#time
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