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586
ELEMENTS.
given a special name, bethphania. 1 As far back as 387, Chrysostom
preaching an Epiphany sermon at Antioch says that
people at that festival drew running water at midnight, and kept
it a whole year, and often two or three (no doubt for thaumaturgic
Superstitious
Christians then believed two things, a hallowing of the water at
uses), and it remained fresh and uncorrupted. 2
midnight of the day of baptism, and a turning
of it into wine
at the time of the bethphania : such water the Germans called
heilawac? and ascribed to it a wonderful power of healing diseases
and wounds, and of never spoiling (see Suppl.).
Possibly even in Syria an old pagan drawing of water became
veiled under new Christian meanings. In Germany other cir
cumstances point undisguisedly
to
water: it was not to be drawn at
a heathen consecration of
midnight, but in the morn
ing before sunrise, down stream and silently (Superst. 89. 775),
usually on Easter Sunday (775-6) to which the above explana
tions do not so well apply ; this water does not it restores
spoil,
youth, heals eruptions, and makes the young cattle strong. 4
Magic water, serving for unchristian divination, is to be collected
before sunrise on a Sunday in one glass from three flowing springs;
and a is
taper lighted before the glass, as before a divine being
(Superst. H. c. 55-57) .
5 Here I bring in once again the Hessian
1 The first manifestation of Christ was his birth, the second his baptism
(Candlemas), the third the marriage in Cana : Tertia apparitio fuit postea similiter
eodem die anno revoluto, cum esset 30 annorum et 13 dierum, Five quando
manifestavit se esse Deum per mutationem aquae in vinum, quod fuit primum
miraculuin apertum, quod Dominus fecit in Cana Galilaeae, vel simpliciter primum
quod fecit. Et haec apparitio dicitur bethphania a jSijTw, quod est domus, et <f>dveiv,
quod est apparitio, quia ista apparitio facta fuit in domo in nuptiis. De his tribus
apparitionibus fit solemnitas in hac die. Durantis Ration, div. offic. 6, 16. The
church consolidated the three manifestations into one festival.
2 Tom. 2 (ed. Montfauc., Paris 1718), p. 369 : dtd TOL TOVTO /cat Kara
(jLeffovvicrltp
/cat et s eviavrov
rrjv eopTrjv ravr^v aVaires vdpevcrd/mevoi olKade TO. vd/mara a.iroTi6evTO.i.,
6\6K\Tjpoj> 0uXdrroucrt, aYe 677 crrj/xepov ayiaadtvTwv T&V vSdrW /cat TO a"rjfJ.elov yufcrat
evapyts, ov dia(f)6eipofj.^vtjs r-rjs r&v vddruv eKfivuv (fivatws TO; /XTj/cet TOV -%pbvov, dXX
es fvLOLVrbv Q\OK\ripov /cat SUM /cat rpta trt] roO o"f)/J.epov avrXyOevros a/cepa/ou K0.1
veapov (JifrovTOS, /cat //.era TOGOVTOV x.P^ vov T s Aprt rdv Tryyuv e^a.pira.crOeiffLv v8a<nv
3 And also heilawm ? Frauenlob MS. 2, 213 b on the garden that bears
heilwin: Altd. bl. 2, 294.
4
Jul. Schmidt s Eeichenf. p. 121. At Cassel I have heard bathing in the
drusel water commended as wholesome, but you must draw with the current, not
against. Probably the right time for it is Walburgis or Midsummer.
6 The rite, like others cited by Hartlieb (who wrote in 1455), may be of classic
origin. In yao-rpofj-avreLa,
i.e. divining by a bellied jar (ydarprf)
filled with water,
there also occurs the torch and the innocent boy (Hartl. s ain rain kind Potter s
).
Antiq., 1, 764. Fabricii Bibliogr. antiq., ed. 3, p. 600.