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Write a short essay describing the kinds of support you might offer a family expecting their first child, including instructions for performing one or more childhood rituals (Amphidromia, Dekate, Khoes), advice on selecting a kourotrophic (protective) deity, and suggestions for including the child in the ritual life of the family and community. What support and advice would you offer an interfaith family?

Being a bachelor most of my life and never being in the position of raising children, I am no authority on the subjects of childbirth and child rearing. In addition, we are attempting to recreate the religion of the ancient Hellenes, not their culture. Therefore, I'll confine my comments to Hellenic religious and spiritual beliefs and practices where my researches can provide confirmation. The nature of our clergy, confines any support I can give to that of authority and witness that appropriate rituals have been performed.

Historically, Hellenes had strong ideas about gender roles. Modern Hellenes have mixed opinions regarding strong gender roles with the majority tending toward a complete lack of gender roles. The benefit of strong gender roles proposed by psychologists is generally discounted with emotional fervor. With that in mind, I will try to suggest that any roles in the following can be filled by either parent (or both parents in cooperation).

Childbirth

The first stage of childhood is the actual birth. The common desires are that the child be born healthy with the least amount of pain and difficulty. Prior to the birth, the parents and midwife must form a regular religious program to establish their relationship with the Immortals. ("...with assistance from the deity with whom she [the Greek midwife] and the mother had to be in good faith" Garland, 63) Sacrifices should be made to Artemis, Hera ("Eileithyia...Goddess of childbirth...She was later identified with Artemis and Hera" Adkins, 303) or Hecate ("And the son of Cronos [Zeus] made her [Hekate] a nurse of the young" Hesiod, Theogony, 113), as the most common goddesses of childbirth.

These prayers should include the three formal parts of Hellenic prayers: the invocation (invocatio), the narrative (pars epica) and the actual wish addressed to the divinity (preces) (Graf, 189). The invocatio should include as many names and past deeds of the goddesses as can be found; the pars epica should include previous and present sacrifices and deeds of the parents giving them reason to expect divine aid; and the preces should state the desire for an easy and complication free childbirth (do not include requests for the future of the child as those are more appropriate at a later time). As a cleric, I can help do the research for the invocatio but the pars epica and the preces are the personal responsibility of the parents.

Common symbols that can be used in these rituals are torches ("Torches are a common attribute of Birth-Goddesses." Rudloff, 103) and dogs ("The association between dogs and deities who watched over childbirth may be because of their use in post-natal purification rituals" Rudloff, 121). Torches are associated with all goddesses of childbirth and dogs are especially associated with Artemis and Hekate in their role of guardian of children and the household ("Hekate when she stands at entranceways: a fearsome guardian against outside dangers and yet a kindly companion to those inside." Rudloff, 121).

When the birth is imminent, the home and place of birth should be purified both physically and spiritually. ("Probably her [Greek midwife] first duty was to supervise the purification of the oikos in general and the gunaikeion in particular, preparatory to the imminent birth." Garland, 63) If the birth takes place in a hospital, it must be assumed that it is physically clean. Spiritual cleansing must consist of quiet prayers which I can help design and perform. This is especially necessary if the mother is the only practicing Hellenic polytheist. ("to what extent she [Greek midwife] functioned as a mediator between the mother and the deities in charge of childbirth is impossible to determine." Garland, 63) These purification rituals must be performed regularly at least until the Amphidromia. Anyone involved with the childbirth is prohibited from performing any other religious function until they are purified at the Amphidromia.("Her [Greek midwife] ministrations probably extended at least until the celebration of the Amphidromia when the pollution caused by birth began to diminish." Garland, 64)

Much like the modern practice of handing out cigars to announce a new birth, historical Hellenes hung an olive wreath on the door to announce the birth of a boy and a bit of wool cloth to announce the birth of a girl. This remained for the week to ten days until the Amphidromia (Garland, 75)

None of this is to imply in any way that I can act as a midwife. I am not qualified for that and don't plan to be.

Amphidromia

The next stage in a child's life is the acceptance into the family: "Between the fifth and tenth day after the birth of a male child, the Amphidromia took place in the presence of members of his family. During this ceremony, the newborn child was carried at a run around the hearth of his home, signifying his official entry into the family." (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 100; Mikalson, 84; Burkert, 255) "like many Greek rituals, it took place in a home and not in a church or temple; secondly, again like many Greek rituals, no priest was required to be present" (Garland, 93-94) "Instead of the 'parents', the women who delivered the baby may have carried it around the hearth. The evidence is unclear on this point." (Mikalson, 135n11).

Historically, a father's responsibility included deciding whether a child was accepted into the family or be accepted into another family: "Athenian fathers did not have the right to decide the life or death of their children. However, it was their decision to admit their sons into the family or, until the age of majority had been reached, to transfer them to another family by means of adoption. They could also assign their sons to a guardian in the event of their own death." (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 100).

In our modern culture, parents frequently concern themselves with who is the 'biological' parents or the 'legal guardians' and sometimes have little concern for the emotional and spiritual responsibilities of raising a child. The Amphidromia provides a means for both parents to accept the responsibility of raising a child while being witnessed by friends and family. In the event that parents don't feel willing or capable of raising a child, they should realize that they have a responsibility to the Immortals to arrange for the child being raised by others. This is also the time for the parents to be purified of the miasma of childbirth: "At birth the guardian (usually the father) had to decide whether to keep the child or expose it. If it was kept a purification ceremony (amphidromia) took place on the fifth or seventh day after birth." (Adkins, 411).

Due to the miasma associated with birth, the mother's thank offering for delivery came at or after she was purified on the celebration of the Amphidromia. ("The Amphidromia probably ended with a sacrifice performed as a thank-offering to the gods and the whole occasion is likely to have been productive of much merriment and feasting." Garland, 94; "Shortly after giving birth the mother would be expected to visit the sanctuary of the birth-goddess or goddesses with whom she had been in communion throughout her long ordeal in order to render thanks for her delivery....A common, perhaps even obligatory, gift was that of the clothes which the woman had worn during pregnancy and childbirth." Garland, 83) I can help research local (or family) heroines and local Nymphs who should be thanked for the safe birth and who may be petitioned to look after the well being of the child as they grow up (Garland, 83).

Dekatê

The next event is a sacrifice where the child receives a name: "On the tenth day there was a sacrifice and a feast, and the child was given his name." (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 100), "On the tenth day after birth the parents named the child and invited relatives and close friends to a banquet which followed the sacrifices" (Mikalson, 84). "It was at a tenth-day ceremony known simply as dekatê or 'tenth' that the baby was given its name" (Garland, 94)

In modern times, a child's name is chosen before it is born so the name can be specified on the birth certificate. Therefore, this naming ceremony can be used to specify the character values that the parents hope the name will inspire in the child as they grow up. It can also be used to specify, before witnesses, the ethical values the parents will teach the child and the training program to teach those values: "Hekate's torches symbolize a guiding function...Phosphoros, the torch-bearer, is the most important image of Hekate in art." (Rudloff, 106).

An appropriate symbol or gift for this celebration would be a framed document specifying the meaning of the child's name and a list of ethical maxims for the child to refer to in later years. As a cleric, I can help the parents search for an appropriate name, chose a list of ethical maxims and interpret those ethics according to events later in life.

Khoes

"During the second day of the festival, the so-called day of the pitchers, the children received gifts, such as toy carts or terracotta animals. They were also given a small pitcher with which, crowned with flowers, they participated in the contest." (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 100). "As with the Apatouria, it is uncertain whether girls were also included....A child's first sip might therefore have established a convenant between the child and the god." (Garland, 122) This is the time for the parents to petition the Immortals to guide and protect their child as they grow up. I can discuss the parents desires for their child and help them decide which Immortal to petition.

Apatouria

After the child is accepted into the immediate family at the Amphidromia, the next step is to introduce the child to the phratriai during the Apatouria: "This was an occasion when all male citizens assembled in hereditary associations known as phratriai, sometimes loosly translated 'brotherhoods'....It is not known whether girls as well as boys were registered in a phratry." (Garland, 121); "The phratries celebrated this three-day festival individually in the month Pyanopsion with feasting and sacrificing. On the final day fathers presented their sons to the phrarty and swore oaths concerning their eligibility for membership. The young men made sacrificial offerings, and the members voted on membership by taking their ballots from the altar of Zeus Phratrios." (Mikalson, 85); "On this occasion, which took place at the age of sixteen, the father swore his son's legitimacy in the presence of his phratry, or brotherhood." (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 101).

In many of our modern communities, we barely know our neighbors and children feel less responsibility for their actions when they don't know the people victimized by those actions. The Apatouria allows us to learn who can be trusted around children and, by making the child an official member of the community, makes it less likely that they will victimize neighbors they know. At the feast of the Apatouria, I can act as emotional support for the parents and help them explain our beliefs to the community.

Kourotrophic

Choosing one or more Kourotrophic ("kourotrofoV rearing or bringing up boys." Feyerabend, 228) 'deities' should not be restricted to children and childbirth: "This kourotrophic function can be further divided into concern for young children and concern for those who are approaching adulthood...The participation of nymphs at each stage of this process is well documented. Heroines may play similar roles, especially when concerns about nurturance are given a civic focus" (Larson, 5). Many family events are watched over by ancestrial or local spirits and none of them can be petitioned only in time of need. The family should research their ancestors and the history of the local area to determine which spirits might be willing to help the family and then establish regular rituals to develop a relationship with those spirits. I can help direct the research and the design of the rituals but the effort of doing research and performing rituals is part of the offering to those spirits so should be performed by the family. Eventually, the family will establish continuing relationships with a few spirits who will be supported and petitioned many times: "the nymphs had the power to aid in conception and birth, so that certain families came to rely on specific groups of nymphs as guarantors of the family's posterity." (Larson, 183).

Family Rituals

In addition to the above, other festivals and rituals have traditional participation by children: "Initiation into the Eleusinian mysteries was also open to children, and one of the honorary positions envisaged was that of the so-called pais aph'hestias, or hearth-child." (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 100); "Two other boys, chosen for their birth and wealth, carried boughs of vine covered with grapes in the Oschophoria, a procession in honor of Dionysus. " (Cambiano, "Becoming an Adult", 101). Young children love to participate in family events and this involvement brings the family closer together. In addition, since children are not always monitoring their thoughts with rationalizations and logic, they can sometimes have a much more spiritual experience than their parents, sometimes even teaching their parents of the will of the Immortals.

Interfaith Families

This being another subject of which I have little or no experience, the only advice I can give comes from common sense and knowledge of people in general. Interfaith parents must first acknowledge to themselves what it is that their respective religions provide for them such as guidance for dealing with others in an ethical manner and beneficial control of the aspects of the universe that can be controlled by mortals. Next they should examine the similarities and differences of their religions. Finally, they should examine how their respective religions view the role of childhood: "Adherents to the theory that man is born with the condition of Original Sin, for instance, maintain that the only way to discipline a child is by subjugating it and breaking its will. The dominant perception in the Greek world seems to have been that children and young people are innately deficient in intelligence and commonsense" (Garland, 127).

Once the parents are clear about their own beliefs, they are in a position to relat those beliefs to children. While it is not in our definition of clerical roles to dictate to parents what they should believe or how they should behave in given situations, I can discuss such things with them and give my educated opinions.

Works Cited

Theoroi Hellenionou.
Approved
10-Feb-03.