AHC: St. Anthony's Fire

Although The Black Death is the most famous disease of the Middle Ages, another was important for the World:

St. Anthony's Fire, or Ergot Poisoning.

It is a disease of Rye, and produces chemicals similar to LSD. It has been associated with Werewolves, the Salem Witch trials, 'possession', and the Beast of Gevaudan.

It also played a part in the Reformation: Catholics and Orthodox regions grew primarily Rye, and have decorated images of Jesus, Mary, and Angels. Protestant regions grew primarily wheat and barley, and have a mutilated, shorter version of the Bible.

How could you prevent Ergot from affecting the Reformation?
 

Philip

Donor
It also played a part in the Reformation: Catholics and Orthodox regions grew primarily Rye, and have decorated images of Jesus, Mary, and Angels. Protestant regions grew primarily wheat and barley, and have a mutilated, shorter version of the Bible.
First, are you sure about the regions? Isn't rye primarily a Northern European grain? I don't think it was cultivated significantly in Catholic strongholds such as Italy and Spain, nor in Orthodox areas such as Greece and the Middle East.

Second, are you drawing a connection between the Orthodox-Catholic use of images and ergotism-induced hallucinations?

How could you prevent Ergot from affecting the Reformation?
Can you be more precise as to the OTL effects?
 
Although The Black Death is the most famous disease of the Middle Ages, another was important for the World:

St. Anthony's Fire, or Ergot Poisoning.

It is a disease of Rye, and produces chemicals similar to LSD. It has been associated with Werewolves, the Salem Witch trials, 'possession', and the Beast of Gevaudan.

It also played a part in the Reformation: Catholics and Orthodox regions grew primarily Rye, and have decorated images of Jesus, Mary, and Angels. Protestant regions grew primarily wheat and barley, and have a mutilated, shorter version of the Bible.

How could you prevent Ergot from affecting the Reformation?

I'm curious to know on what grounds you believe Southern and Eastern Europe grew primarily rye and not wheat. Also on what grounds you believe that a significant portion of this rye was infected with ergot.

Wikipedia (not much of a source, but it's a starting point) states:
Since the Middle Ages, rye has been widely cultivated in Central and Eastern Europe, and is the main bread cereal in most areas east of the French-German border and north of Hungary

So half-Protestant Germany and the Baltic region grows rye, and Catholic France and Spain don't, and that debunks your theory off the bat. The Scots were (and some of them remained) devout Catholics and lived primarily off oats.

Further, I am wondering about your logic chain where you associate a fungal poisoning with the use of icons. Trust me, the theological writings defending the icons were not produced under the influence of chemicals -- no one writes like John of Damascus while tripping on LSD.
 
I'm curious to know on what grounds you believe Southern and Eastern Europe grew primarily rye and not wheat. Also on what grounds you believe that a significant portion of this rye was infected with ergot.

Wikipedia (not much of a source, but it's a starting point) states:
Since the Middle Ages, rye has been widely cultivated in Central and Eastern Europe, and is the main bread cereal in most areas east of the French-German border and north of Hungary

So half-Protestant Germany and the Baltic region grows rye, and Catholic France and Spain don't, and that debunks your theory off the bat. The Scots were (and some of them remained) devout Catholics and lived primarily off oats.

Further, I am wondering about your logic chain where you associate a fungal poisoning with the use of icons. Trust me, the theological writings defending the icons were not produced under the influence of chemicals -- no one writes like John of Damascus while tripping on LSD.

Most European countries grew at least some rye. For the southern ones it was primarily a cover crop or animal feed, but if conditions were too cool in spring for wheat, rye was what fed the people. The further north you go, the more people depended on rye since it can outproduce wheat in wet, cool springs, which incidentally are also the conditions favored for ergot infection. While ergot poisoning can happen in southern Europe (in fact it occurs in many tropical regions as well, only different species are involved) it is much rarer than in the north.

As for ergot and religious icons, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the significant role entheogens have played in religions throughout history all over the world. Harmal in the Middle East, soma(whatever it is) and cannabis in India, ayahuasca in South America, tobacco and peyote in Mesoamerica and US, fly agaric in Siberia and Scandinavia, and plants containing tropane alkaloids practically everywhere are just some examples. One the Bible mentions quite often and is fundamental to Catholicism is alcohol. Taking these isn't necessarily like tripping on LSD--the tropane alkaloids make you completely unable to distinguish what's real from the imaginary--and the point of taking them (when they were/are relevant to the religion) isn't to get high for fun. It's to change the way you see reality and to bring you closer to whatever deity is important. Whether through chemicals, meditation, spinning around really fast to make yourself dizzy as a child or other means, altering your way of thinking is fundamental to human consciousness.
 
Most European countries grew at least some rye. For the southern ones it was primarily a cover crop or animal feed, but if conditions were too cool in spring for wheat, rye was what fed the people. The further north you go, the more people depended on rye since it can outproduce wheat in wet, cool springs, which incidentally are also the conditions favored for ergot infection. While ergot poisoning can happen in southern Europe (in fact it occurs in many tropical regions as well, only different species are involved) it is much rarer than in the north.

As for ergot and religious icons, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the significant role entheogens have played in religions throughout history all over the world. Harmal in the Middle East, soma(whatever it is) and cannabis in India, ayahuasca in South America, tobacco and peyote in Mesoamerica and US, fly agaric in Siberia and Scandinavia, and plants containing tropane alkaloids practically everywhere are just some examples. One the Bible mentions quite often and is fundamental to Catholicism is alcohol. Taking these isn't necessarily like tripping on LSD--the tropane alkaloids make you completely unable to distinguish what's real from the imaginary--and the point of taking them (when they were/are relevant to the religion) isn't to get high for fun. It's to change the way you see reality and to bring you closer to whatever deity is important. Whether through chemicals, meditation, spinning around really fast to make yourself dizzy as a child or other means, altering your way of thinking is fundamental to human consciousness.

Sure -- none of which has to do with iconography or the Protestant Reformation. Or the assertion that Northern European Protestants ate less rye and therefore hallucinated less than Southern European Catholics and Eastern European Orthodox.

And incidentally, if you're altering your perception of reality off of communion wine, you're doing it wrong. The closest I've gotten was catching a buzz at the feast after the Pascha service -- but that's drinking wine on an empty stomach after a mid-night liturgy.
 
Sure -- none of which has to do with iconography or the Protestant Reformation. Or the assertion that Northern European Protestants ate less rye and therefore hallucinated less than Southern European Catholics and Eastern European Orthodox.

Not directly, but theological writings defending iconography don't really have anything to do with how icons are painted and where the artist draws inspiration either. It's been a while since I've analyzed iconic paintings, but many icons represent objects completely 2-dimensionally with distorted size relations and repetition of elements. That doesn't indicate the use of hallucinogens, but it is an altered way of seeing and depicting the world. I'm not saying that artists painted high, I'm saying that an altered way of seeing something is often the basis of a new innovation. Icon painting grew out of a larger, older tradition of depictions of deities and rituals, some of which were heavily based on altering consciousness. On the other hand, many artists do their best work under the influence of something.

I believe I refuted the OP's assertion that the north was less subject to ergot poisoning in my first paragraph.

And incidentally, if you're altering your perception of reality off of communion wine, you're doing it wrong. The closest I've gotten was catching a buzz at the feast after the Pascha service -- but that's drinking wine on an empty stomach after a mid-night liturgy.

But you do partake in communion to become closer to God and convey divine grace right? Drinking the wine and eating the bread alters your perception of your own body in that you have accepted the blessing and now consider yourself to have been blessed (I'm not Christian so forgive me for any incorrect interpretations). You perceive yourself differently than before. The point of an entheogen is to change the way you see things whether in reality or in your mind which in turn changes the way you relate to a deity.
 
Not directly, but theological writings defending iconography don't really have anything to do with how icons are painted and where the artist draws inspiration either. It's been a while since I've analyzed iconic paintings, but many icons represent objects completely 2-dimensionally with distorted size relations and repetition of elements. That doesn't indicate the use of hallucinogens, but it is an altered way of seeing and depicting the world. I'm not saying that artists painted high, I'm saying that an altered way of seeing something is often the basis of a new innovation. Icon painting grew out of a larger, older tradition of depictions of deities and rituals, some of which were heavily based on altering consciousness. On the other hand, many artists do their best work under the influence of something.

I believe I refuted the OP's assertion that the north was less subject to ergot poisoning in my first paragraph.

But you do partake in communion to become closer to God and convey divine grace right? Drinking the wine and eating the bread alters your perception of your own body in that you have accepted the blessing and now consider yourself to have been blessed (I'm not Christian so forgive me for any incorrect interpretations). You perceive yourself differently than before. The point of an entheogen is to change the way you see things whether in reality or in your mind which in turn changes the way you relate to a deity.

I may have misunderstood what you wrote earlier, because this is perfectly clear and I agree with it. Orthodox iconography is deliberately distorted in order to represent symbolically that which cannot be represented, and in order to create a representation of a supernatural state. Choices of color, proportion, and non-naturalistic depictions are deliberately intended to evoke an altered perception of the subject matter, while remaining recognizable.

I also agree that the Eucharist does alter the perception of a believer who partakes. The chemical composition of the wine isn't really relevant, since the quantity consumed is generally less than a teaspoon of wine cut half or more with water and with bread dumped in. But if you truly believe you are consuming the literal body and blood of your God, you cannot help but be affected. I'm not sure it's quite the same concept as an entheogen, which as I understand it is typically psychoactive in and of itself.
 
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