The crossover.

 Has anyone been watching "The Pilgrimage" on BBC2? I dipped into the first episode yesterday and have to say I did enjoy it [it's not very highbrow!] and hearing the participants discussing their different views about faith from their personal perspectives and experiences. I have no problem with what people believe [or not] provided they're tolerant, not dogmatic and it doesn't harm anyone. In this household alone we've got an agnostic, an atheist and a Druid, but we're quite happy to accept the differences and get on with our lives. This programme follows seven pilgrims following in the path of St Columba across Ireland and over into Scotland. As ever I'm particularly enjoying seeing all the Neolithic standing stones which would have once have been sites of worship for our Pagan ancestors [and still are for modern day Pagans] and are now venerated by Christians. I saw another example of the crossover of religious beliefs recently at the Chedworth Roman Villa when we popped in for a visit before heading home.

This is the Nymphaeum which was built over a natural spring. People would have come here to leave their votive offerings to the female water spirits. If you wanted a continuous supply of clean water to keep you alive you needed to stay on the right side of them! 

However, by the 4th century it was all change. Water spirit worship practices were out and Christianity was firmly in place. The stone below was one of the coping stones round the pool and on it is the Chi Rho symbol and is one of the earliest forms of a Christogram. It uses the first two capital letters of the Greek Christos. Chi looks like an X and Rho like a P. As an interesting aside it's also where the abbreviated Xmas is derived from.

However, despite the imposition of this new religion this wasn't the end of the story. It would seem that the water spirits made a successful bid to regain their crown for this stone was actually found being reused as one of the steps in the West Bath house with the symbol hidden away on the underside! 

Arilx