Yet in spite of being so anti-gay, the NET Bible links the Mo-lech worship of Leviticus 18:21 and 20:2-5, 13, with sexual sin and with spiritual prostitution, "I will cut off from the midst of their people both him and all who follow after him in spiritual prostitution, to commit prostitution by worshiping Molech (Hebrew - to commit harlotry after Molech)." 20th Century Timeline Of World History: What Happened? The NET Bible, not considered gay friendly by anyone, takes a strong anti-gay position on Leviticus. Hail Astaroth! Astarte Worship Rituals The worship rituals of Astrate include making offerings to the goddess at her temple, which is located in the city of Babylon. . Please allow a few minutes for this process to complete. Oh!Perpetually fertilized, virgin and nurse of all that is,Chaste and lascivious, pure and revelling, ineffable, nocturnal, sweet,Breather of fire, foam of the sea!Thou who accordest grace in secret,Thou who unitest,Thou who lovest,Thou who seizest with furious desire the multiplied races of savage beastsAnd couplest the sexes in the wood.Oh, irresistible Astarte!Hear me, take me, possess me, oh, Moon!And thirteen times each year draw from my womb the sweet libation of my blood! What is the meaning of AD, BC, BCE and CE? Her name appears in the Old Testament (I Kings xi. Make sure to stay in control at all times instead of subjugating yourself to the demon. Seeker of Wisdom and Keeper of Time! Transvestism in Ancient . This action will also remove this member from your connections and send a report to the site admin. Astarte, goddess of war and sexual love, shared so many qualities with her sister, Anath, that they may originally have been seen as a single deity. Baal's victory over death was thought to be repeated each year when he returned from the land of death (underworld), bringing rain to renew the earth's fertility. 10) like the Assyrian "ilani u ishtarati" for "gods and goddesses.". In the figure of Inanna several traditions seem to have been combined: she is sometimes the daughter of the sky god An, sometimes his wife; in other myths she is the daughter of Nanna, god of the moon, or of the wind god, Enlil. How Long Was Joseph In Potiphars House? Site created in November 2000. Idolatry always included sex worship of false gods. One of the most unusual practices Herodotus details is the that of sacred prostitution, which he observes in the ancient city of Babylon. Astarte's cult in the fourth-century bce Kition tariff text likely involved offerings of cakes as did that of the Queen of Heaven in Jeremiah . Yahweh is God? Asherah was worshiped in various ways, including through ritual sex. 12). She is the author of Daily Spellbook for the Good Witch, Wicca Practical Magic and The Daily Spell Journal. That towns were named after the fertility goddess indicates that her worship was already widespread when the children of Israel entered the land of Canaan. As a part of this ritual, women were obliged to sacrifice either their hair or their chastity. It was discovered that Astarte was linked with the Uni-Astre of the Etruscans. Beelzebub, based on the Philistine god Baalzebul, had become a synonym for the prince of demons, Satan. Although the horns of the bull that she wore represented fertility, they could appear fearsome, In her fearful aspect she was the mistress of horses and chariots, which might have been an Arabian variant of the god Athtar, known as the terrible god who tried to oust Baal, History, Worship, origin and Cult of Astarte, Astartes name was first recorded about 1478 BC. Variants of the name Astarte can be found in the Phoenician, Hebrew, Egyptian and Etruscan languages. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Hades, the Greek god of the underworld, became the namesake for the place of the dead and even for hell itself. Hire me to perform an Astaroth ritual for you: 13 Best Demons to Summon (Summoning Rituals Included! Rituals and Ceremonies Wiccans and Pagans have a number of rituals and celebrations. In this way, God's incredible gift of sexuality was perverted to the most obscene public prostitution. By summoning Aphrodite you can improve your love life in many ways. Gay Christian 101 - Affirming God's glorious good news for all LGBTs. Focus on the Family is committed to helping families thrive according to Gods Word! Offerings to Astarte typically included libations of food and drink. The problem is a difficult one, the references to the cult in the Old Testament being so few and so vague. One that I've used successfully is: "Hail Astaroth! But this didn't happen immediately. A few Biblical passages make a reference to the worship of a Queen of Heaven, who may have been Astarte. Blame it on a woman and no ordinary woman at that a goddess. In 1894, French poet Pierre Louys published a volume of erotic poetry entitled Songs of Bilitis, which he claimed were written by a contemporary of the Greek poet Sappho. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Astaroth often appears as either a beautiful or an ugly angel or prince, riding a dragon and holding a snake in his left hand. Hail Astaroth!. It is not appropriate here to discuss all the gods and goddesses of the Greco-Roman pantheon; however, a few of them were significant in the first century, and some are even mentioned by name in the Bible. . Wigington, Patti. 105), in which the armor was hung after the battle of Gilboa (I Sam. In the book of Jeremiah, there is a verse referencing this female deity, and Yahwehs anger at the people who honor her: Among some fundamentalist branches of Christianity, there is a theory that Astartes name provides the origin for the Easter holiday which should, therefore, not be celebrated because it is held in honor of a false deity. Wigington, Patti. When Epigeius was overthrown by the god Elus, a virgin daughter was sent. Phone Toll Free: 877-966-7300 or 816-584-3077, [This article continues after a message from the authors], These Articles are Written by the Publishers of, Amazing Bible Timeline with World History 2023. Astaroth is the teacher of all the sciences especially skilled in the liberal sciences. It is usually assumed that Astarte Worship was always a foreign cult among the Hebrews; but analogy with the development of other Semitic deities, like the Phenician Baal, would lead to the supposition that Astarte Worship before the days of the Prophets may have somewhat prejudiced that of Yhwh. With Shamash, the sun god, and Sin, the moon god, she forms a secondary astral triad. In modern NeoPaganism, Astarte has been included in a Wiccan chant that is used to raise energy, calling upon Isis, Astarte,Diana,Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna.. Romans 1 describes ancient shrine prostitution, not gays and lesbians. 3). Learn Religions, Sep. 8, 2021, learnreligions.com/who-is-astarte-2561500. Omissions? The leader of the gods, Zeus (Jupiter to the Romans), took on the role of Baal, the god of weather or storms. Reveal yourself in the flames before me! 3:6,13; Ezek. She was, the ancient Phoenician great goddess of fertility, motherhood, and war, Astarte is the counterpart of the Babylonian goddess, And it is one of the oldest Middle Eastern aspects of the great. The center of her cult was in Tyre, but also included Carthage, Malta, Eryx (Sicily), and Kition (Cyprus). For that reason, God and Moses prohibited Israel from worshiping Moloch in Leviticus 18:21 and 20:2, 3, 4, 5. Click here for our comprehensive article on ancient Mesopotamia. He also has terrible breath. Molech, fire-god of ancient Canaan When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. It is also the Greek name of Ishtar, who is a Mesopotamian Semitic goddess. - Amos 5:25-26 and Acts 7:42-43. The Phoenicians called her Astarte, the Assyrians worshiped her as Ishtar, and the Philistines had a temple of Asherah ( 1 Samuel 31:10 ). In the Lemegeton, he appears as either a beautiful or an ugly angel, riding a dragon and holding a viper. When youre done, end the ritual along these lines: Thank you mighty Astaroth for lending me your powers and knowledge. Ishtars primary legacy from the Sumerian tradition is the role of fertility figure; she evolved, however, into a more complex character, surrounded in myth by death and disaster, a goddess of contradictory connotations and forcesfire and fire-quenching, rejoicing and tears, fair play and enmity. Sometimes my clients are also not comfortable dealing with the spiritual world on their own or lack the necessary items and solitude to even conduct these rituals. However, the work was all Louys own, and included a stunning prayer honoring Astarte: Mother inexhaustible and incorruptible,Creatures, born the first, engendered by thyself and by thyself conceived,Issue of thyself alone and seeking joy within thyself, Astarte! But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves." It was designed like an old fashioned pot-bellied stove, with the belly as the firebox. Priestesses of this goddess, at least one order of them, performed as sacred prostitutes, lying with males who desired their services in ritual sexuality. Sacred Marriage Clearly, though the names of the gods had changed, the people?s worship practices had not. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus referred to the gates of Hades, or the underworld, believed by some to be the grotto at Caesarea Philippi, from which one of the sources of the Jordan River came. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Z-xX9zelUk. x. Rituals connected to the worship of Ishtar/Inanna include a Sacred Marriage in which a male ruler is identified with Dumuzi. Participation in these sects was highly secretive, and few details of their ceremonies survive. In the description, it was presented that Astarte was the daughter of Epigeius and Ge, and that she was Elus sister. It is now unknown exactly how the Phoenicians comprehended her identity, which is unfortunate as they are most closely associated with herthe ones, as traders and master navigators, who carried her veneration (and statues) to their colonies in Europe, Africa, and islands in between. "You shall not plant any tree as an Asherah beside the altar of the Lord your God.". Phoenician Goddess of Fertility and Sexual Pleasure. Over the years, Baal became the dominant deity, and the worship of El faded. She was also the goddess of rain and thunderstormsleading to her association with An, the sky godand was often pictured with the lion, whose roar resembled thunder. The Greeks had oracles, shrines where gods supposedly communicated the future to priests and priestesses. Avoid having his presence linger on longer than necessary. According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, the Hebrews first learned Baal worship from the agricultural Canaanites. To show her sovereignty, Astarte decided to place a bulls head on her own. Astarte, the queen of heaven, was almost as fierce as Anat but less remote than Athirat. 74, and "Hebraica," x. Asherah, the moon goddess, was the principal female deity worshiped by ancient Syrians, Phoenicians, and Canaanites. Therefore, Astaroth has revealed himself to many magicians as a beautiful women instead. We need to learn from Israel's experience and respond to Jesus' command for total allegiance. 40-year journey in the wilderness, their Lord accompanied them, protected them, fed them, and guided them to the Promised Land. This sunrise worship of the sun god is condemned by Yahweh in Ezekiel. Obtain a deeper knowledge of magic with my latest book The Psy-Mage Compendium. In this manifestation her symbol is a star with 6, 8, or 16 rays within a circle. After all, secular prostitutes plied their trade in Mesopotamian cities as well. Offerings to Astarte typically included libations of food and drink. The power attributed to her in war may have arisen from her connection with storms. When the Philistines defeated Israelite King Saul, they placed his captured armor in Astarte's temple as tribute and thanks. Ashtarte. Your email address will not be published. It landed near Byblos in a lake at Alphaca. For example, when the Peleset (Philistines) killed Saul and his three sons on Mount Gilboa, they deposited the enemy armor as spoils in the temple of "Ashtoreth.". The "Sunrise Service" is still an intragal part of Easter today. Raphael Patai, author of The Hebrew Goddess, suggests that these molds were used to form goddess-shaped cakes either to be burned on an altar or eaten by celebrants (perhaps an ancient precursor of the Catholic host). 18; xliv. Astarte was very popular in Old Testament times and traveled far and wide, starting up in business all over the place with the help of her consort and . She guards women's reproductive health. 3:11-13). 5 When the Philistines captured the ark of God, they brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod; 2 then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon and placed it beside Dagon. God placed the Holiness Code prohibitions of Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 in the context of worshiping false gods, 18:3, 21-22 and 20:2-5, 13, 23. The God Seth Facts. Many of the gods they worshiped, however, were localized and are now known only under their local names. Please note: All rights reserved. Lilies, roses, sweet cakes, honey. Immense knowledge, power, protection from harm (invisibility) and hidden treasures are all within reach of those who form a good relationship with this unique entity. The NET Bible on Leviticus 18:21, Note 30, says: "It could refer to either human sacrifice or a devotion of children to some sort of service of Molech, perhaps of a sexual sort (cf. Easter, a pagan festival with its pagan fertility symbols, replaced the God-ordained festivals that Jesus Christ, the apostles and the early Church observed. Some scholars believe that the Canaanites also sacrificed pigs and that God prohibited his people from eating pork in part to prevent this horrible cult from being established among them. Be respectful and considerate when invoking him and you will reap the benefits. Astarte Astarte was the fertility goddess of the Phoenicians, as well as the goddess of sexual love, war, and the evening star. Scripture describes this practice as "passing through the fire to Molech," Leviticus 18:21. In 1974, the sociologist Peter Berger wrote what has come to be a well-known piece on the secularization of society, and the loss of the sacred. HistoryOnTheNet 2000-2019. According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art: "Although there existed no single state theology, the major gods reflect local geographical concerns about the fertility of the earth and the importance of water as well as relationships to the sky and the underworld." For instance, there were coins in Sidon that included the symbol with a chariot where a globe or stone appears, and this represented Astarte. The priestess or a female members of the community represented Asherah. Ancient Assyrians and Babylonians portrayed her caressing a child. It is best to understand these rituals as a religious act of devotion to the goddess rather than as sex per se. In Islam, Mo-lech is called Malec or Malik (meaning King), believed to be the principle angel in charge of Djahannam, the Islamic version of hell. Your support now will help strengthen marriages, equip parents to raise godly children, save preborn babies, reach out to orphans and more by supporting our daily broadcasts, online and print resources, counseling, and life-changing initiatives. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. a fire god worshiped throughout the ancient near East and North Africa, by Canaanites and Philistines, Arameans and Semitic peoples and later, Phoenicians. She was the consort of the chief deity El and the mother of 70 other gods. The inclusion of this prohibition against Molech worship here may be due to some sexual connection of this kind, or perhaps simply to the lexical link between (zera) meaning seed, semen in v. 20 but offspring in v. Baal won his dominance by defeating the other deities, including the god of the sea, the god of storms (also of rain, thunder, and lightning), and the god of death. The high priestess of the city, acting in the capacity of the fertility goddess Inanna, would have sex with the high priest or the king role-playing the fertility god Dumuzi. Remember that in Mesopotamia, agriculture held primary importance and keeping the land fertile required many religious observances. Stuckey goes on to point out that because of this migration via trade routes, Astarte became much far important in the first millennium BCE than she had been in previous thousand years. So youre interested in summoning Astaroth, the Grand Duke and Treasurer of Hell? After all, secular prostitutes plied their trade in Mesopotamian cities as well. Astaroth loves to complain to those who are willing to listen about how he was unjustly punished by God along with other Fallen Angels. Documents from the thirteenth century BCE indicate the Egyptians considered Anat and Astarte to be two allied war goddesses. He promised his disciples that his church would overcome all evil, even the gates of Hades itself. In Judges 2:13 & 10:6, 1 Samuel 7:3 & 4, 12:10 & 31:10, Ashtaroth refers to the ancient Canaanite fertility goddess, with a slightly different spelling than Ashtoreth. Hail Astaroth! The pantheon in Phoenicia was generally ascribed to the Sanchuniathon. In Phenician countries she was the female counterpart of Baal, and was no doubt worshiped with him by those Hebrews who at times became his devotees. Cleitarchus, an ancient historian, around 315 BC, gives this description of a fire god at Carthage. Astarte (also Ashtart, Ashtoreth) In ancient Phoenicia, the great Goddess of fertility, motherhood and war. But some demons have more power than others, and its often not clear what a certain demon, Read More 13 Best Demons to Summon (Summoning Rituals Included! 65:1-5 for an example of Israel's participating in the pagan practices of the Canaanites.) When translated literally, Asteroth Karnaim means Ashteroth of the Horns. Kronos is the north African name for Molech. Inanna, who later transformed into the Akkadian goddess Ishtar, the Phoenician Astarte and later still as the Greek goddess Aphrodite, is the goddess of love, sex, beauty and fertility. The Israelites neglected to heed the Lord's warning not to compromise with idolaters. 4, xii. Astarte is a spirit of abundance, prosperity, love, sex, and war. 13, xxviii. Deuteronomy 22:5 is prohibiting a specific kind of transvestism, one in which men dressed as women and women dressed as men would identify themselves as servants of Asherah, prostitute themselves in the temple of Yahweh, and thus bring ritual impurity to the worship of the God of Israel. Ishtar, (Akkadian), Sumerian Inanna, in Mesopotamian religion, goddess of war and sexual love. 21.". One way we can accomplish this is to study the gods that attracted Yahweh's people 3,000 years ago. . It can be very difficult to distinguish between West Semitic spirits because of their tradition of addressing spirits by both a personal name and an honorific. She also wandered around the world, and she was noted to have picked up a fallen star or a meteorite and placed it at Tyre. They exercised a very real power over the primitive Canaanites. Herodotus, however, is an unreliable reporter, which is why scholars debate the historicity of this practice. Bibliography: J. Selden, De dis Syris, ii, 2, London, 1617; F. Mnter, Die Religion der Carthager, pp. 14) attest various forms of this worship in their time, which may refer to a direct importation from Babylonia. Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it? Since Bathin can be very helpful with acquiring knowledge and travelling faster and more safely, its no wonder that many magicians wish to contact him at one point or another. God repeatedly commanded the Old Testament. The goddess Astarte bore Elus seven daughters (Titanides) and two sons (Pothos and Eros). Diodorus Siculus, 90-30 BC, gives this description of a Carthaginian fire god. He was known by many names, all signifying the same false god. When summoning Astaroth, its important to hold a silver ring in front of your face to protect yourself from his vile breath, which can otherwise cause serious physical ailments. One can readily see why God and Moses called this pagan religious practice and the sexual rites associated with it, abomination. 45, 47). Many of the ancient pagan deities lived on, however, now identified with the gods of the Greeks and Romans, the nations who controlled the people of Israel before and during New Testament times. The name "Baal" shows up seven times in Hosea (2:8, 2:13, 2:16, 2:17, 9:10, 11:2, 13:1); four of those ins . Astarte waded in the blood of her human victims. Regardless of your primary motivations, you can now hire me for a consultation and to do the difficult part of the equation for you, while you reap the rewards. There was in their city a bronze image of Cronus extending its hands, palms up and sloping toward the ground, so that each of the children when placed thereon rolled down and fell into a sort of gaping pit filled with fire.. And it is one of the oldest Middle Eastern aspects of the great Goddess, dating to the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. Sacrifices made to her included firstborn children and newborn animals. Many gods and goddesses of the Mediterranean and Middle East appreciate gifts of honey and wine, incense, bread, and fresh meat. The adjective spiritual was inserted by the translators because in their opinion this is not a reference to literal prostitution but figuratively compares idolatry to prostitution. The Bible called this practice "detestable" (Deut. Ashtoreth was the goddess of war and fertility, called Ishtar by Assyrians and Babylonians, called Astarte by Greeks and Romans and called Tanith by North Africans. The land was fertile beyond anything the Hebrew nomads had ever seen. Astarte is the Phenician name of the primitive Semitic mother-goddess, out of which the most important of the Semitic deities were developed. The Catholic Church slowly and gradually grafted these pagan customs on to the name and resurrection of Christ . 6; I Sam. 5; II Kings xxiii. A beautiful, sexy woman sometimes depicted with a Hathor-style hairdo. Astaroth is a great and a strong duke, coming forth in the shape of a foul angel, sitting upon an infernal dragon, and carrying on his right hand a viper, who also claimed to rule 40 legions, and had to be approached by the conjurer with a magical ring on account of his stinking breath. Bibl. Many sorcerers claimed to have the ability to cast out demons (Acts 8:9-24, 13:6-12), as did some Pharisees. Although she was believed to be Baal's mother, she was also his mistress. x. 5, 33; II Kings xxiii. In Cyprus she was an ancient divinity with origins linked to the worship of the powers of life; a goddess of fertility who was worshiped on the island since the Iron Age, and whom the Cypriots presumably did not at that time call Aphrodite.