Well...
Jesus Christ sacrificed himself to pay for the sins of his people. And when I attended church weekly with my grandmother, I was taught that he also sacrificed himself so others wouldn't have to sacrifice the lamb to appease their god, pay for their own sins, etc.
So for a Christian to want to preform a blood/animal sacrifice would just be absurd, and is not at all a Christian act. For praying to your god would be the only thing required.
Re: Blood/Animal Sacrifice By: Lark Moderator / Adept
Post # 12 Sep 03, 2015
I will point out here that, with a very few exceptions for certain religious groups, sacrificing animals is against the law and you could face fines and jail time for cruelty to animals.
I personally don't view Animal Sacrifice to be absurd and even if you do or don't it is still a matter of belief and it doesn't make someone elses views less valid. Kosher meats for example are killed in a certain way following guide lines, so everytime you eat a kosher meat you took part in a animal sacrifice. They bless the animal before they kill it.
The United States recognizes Santeria as being allowed to practice blood/animal sacrifices.
Re: Blood/Animal Sacrifice By: Lark Moderator / Adept
Post # 14 Sep 03, 2015
Sim, those were two examples of the exceptions I was talking about. However the original poster said he was not doing this as part of religious practice but simply to make his own magical workings more powerful. In that case his actions would not fall into the category of legally protected and would be considered animal cruelty.
If he wants to engage in blood sacrifice he might want to consider using his own blood in his workings rather than killing an animal.
Most magicians who work with sacrifice indeed use their own blood, the blood of an assistant, or an alternative to blood I can't mention here. The prior have no death element, the latter a metaphorical one.
But, I know animal sacrifice is an important part of various religious groups and is far from absurd in my opinion, it is certainly not a necessary element to a ritual, however, it has it's place.
I personally think it is a waste if you are not part of a community or group which will then put the animal parts to use e.g. in a feast and to make things. Most animal sacrifice is done in a manner which gives the animal a clean death, not all, but most. Animals were respected in tribal communities, they were the food source, and they had rituals to honour the animal, to treat the as an equal spiritual being so they may once again return to be hunted.
It's not a pleasing thought for many, but if you are going to do it for the animals sake give it a clean death. For your sake, don't go around shouting about it!
Blood working is usually geared towards women. For emotional/fertility improvement of a relationship (sex magik), female empowerment, or the anointing of powerful ritual items - due to their menstrual cycle.
As far as animal sacrifice goes, it's legally contained to personal property and the practitioner's religion. People usually keep small areas for animal raising, just for this purpose.
What you see in movies and tv, or read in books, doesn't exist. As others have said, the animal is respected and all of it is used.
If you're still interested, look up blood working first. You may prick your finger for blood, or buy the faux blood - red ink that's ritually created for blood working.
Blood isn't even a part of the menstrual cycle. It is lining of the uterus wall that looks and smells like blood. Aside from a few Neopagan sources, I've not seen anything for blood work that favors women over men.
If I use blood in an offering, it is because those specific spirits like blood as an offering. If someone will prick their fingers, it is best to buy alcohol swabs and a lancet (as that is what Diabetics use on a daily basis to check their blood sugar).
In magical practice outside of religious practice, I've always understood blood work to be about using a physical expression of your essence to strengthen ties between you and what you are doing (or who you are associating with if you work with spirits). One thing about blood work is that it does not have to be sacrifice - you can use the energy of the blood while it is still in your body. Buying "faux blood" makes the practice completely pointless because it is devoid of the practitioner.
