This is an old thread, but I hope the OP is still here =)
How do you offer sacrifices to a god/gods/godesses/etc and what do you offer?
I worship the Gods of Rome and the Gods of the Gauls. I usually offer anything from grain, to part of my main meal of the day, to wine and olives. I also offer a bit of my morning coffee to the Gods to share with me.
What is on your alter?
Fall decorations, statues, bowls of salt, water and an offering bowl, a cauldron a gemstone tree, candles, incense and holders, a wand, runes/tarot cards for omens, a set of prayer beads and an athame
How do you deal with parents/general family/friends/strangers and their objections?
I've never had a stranger give me a problem, since I don't generally wear my faith on my sleeve. However, as someone who aspires to be a community leader, I expect that will change. My parents think I'm a nutcase and that I ruin Christmas every year by not believing in Christ, and I don't have any friends who are bothered by it since I tend to surround myself with open minded people, if not people who are Pagan themselves.
If anyone specifically worships Greek/Roman or Egyptian gods, could you please go into a bit more detail when talking about the sacrifices and holidays?
Roman Gods appreciate offerings, and offer us blessings in return. It is a reciprocal relationship - they don't simply want worship, they genuinely want to assist. But, we offer to them not because we want something, but because they deserve our thanks and praise.
When sacrificing, it's traditional to cover the head and have some sort of music playing in the background to eliminate distraction and to ward off bad omens while worshiping. In addition, Romans were very particular about words and gestures in ritual, and if something did not go correctly - you fumbled the words, got distracted by something or forgot an important part of the ritual such as the offering or its vessel, then the ritual would have to be redone, and an extra offering would have to be given to apologize for the mess up.
Holidays are a little more complicated. The Roman calendar was filled to the brim with holidays, celebrating everything from an agricultural event to the celebration of the anniversary of a military victory or the concecration of a temple. For my part, I celebrate the 8 holidays of the neo-pagan calendar and relate them to the closest holiday of the Roman calendar in date and purpose. Here's a quick run down:
October - Lemuria/Parentalia: a celebration of the dead and the ancestors
December - Saturalia: Celebration of the invincible Sun
February - Lupercalia: Festival of fertility, pastoral, agricultural and female
March - Liberalia: Celebration of human fertility
May - Floralia: Celebration of the vegetative goddess Flora
June - Bacchinalia: Celebration of the grape harvest in honor of Bacchus
August - Ludi Apollonares: Feast/Games of Apollo
September - Feast in honor of the Earth Mother Ops/Tellus
was to my elemental guides. I gave them the last cupful of sake. I love sake, and when I do sacrifices, I try to actually make it a sacrifice and not just what I have lying around. Money is extremely tight for me, so I'll offer coins when I take some plant life (with it's permission, of course). My first offering was around Samhain a couple of years ago, and I offered two packages of Smarties, my FAVORITE Halloween candy. All of those things, I give to the earth. I poured the sake on the ground after offering it to my guides to enjoy; I spread the Smarties on the ground.
