The Celtic Cross Caillin  SBAG-CELTICCROSS-CAILLIN   $49  Expedited Shipping Available! E-mail service@strongblade.com or call 866-7SWORDS In Stock - Ships in 1-3 days    The pagan Celts may have accepted Christianity, but they didn't leave their old ideals completely behind. The Celtic cross features the typical Christian crucifix but has a Celtic circle behind it, and usually bears intricate Celtic patterns throughout. There are many explanations for why this is, but all seem to agree that it most likely was the union of Celtic ideals (possibly the circle represents the sun or the moon goddess) with Christian symbolism. This is a concept that jives pretty well with the overall relationship between Christians and pagans. After all, Christians adopted and altered many pagan holy days as their own, possibly to ease the conversion of pagans who did not relish the thought of giving up their rituals. Easter, for example, falls around the time of the Spring Solstice, an extremely sacred pagan occasion, devoted to fertility. Rather than force the pagans to give up this ritual time, Christianity simply changed it's calendar to match that of the pagans. Ever wonder what the heck the Easter bunny and the egg have to do with Christ rising from the dead? No, they didn't serve rabbit and hard boiled eggs at his last supper. Rabbits and eggs are both symbols of fertility. There are a number of examples like this, including the adoption of the pagan Yule log as the modern Christmas tree. But the main fact remains; the principles of Christianity never really changed, even if their holy days and some of their traditions did.

Did you know that Greek Hoplite soldiers placed their best fighters in the front and back of their formations? The ones in the front were placed there to meet their enemies first and hopefully drive them backward. The ones in the rear were there to make sure none of their fellow soldiers decided to break formation and run. Strongblade has a large selection of Greek swords, Greek Weapons and Greek Armor.

Keywords: pendant, necklace, celtic, cross, alchemy, gothic