Tag: Christianity

Calendar of the Sun for Friday, May 4

Calendar of the Sun
4 Thrimilchimonath

Ilmarinen’s Day

Colors: Red and black
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of red and black set an iron anvil, a hammer, a box of intricate making within which are many golden stars, and eight red candles.
Offerings: Make something.
Daily Meal: Food that is cunningly wrought to look like something it is not.

Invocation to Ilmarinen

O great smith of the northern snows,
Swift of sleigh and skilled of hand,
You who wrought the sampo,
That which given forth inexhaustible wealth,
Guide our hands in that which we create!
Let us be flowing wells
Of the creative force,
And let us make manifest that which we need.
Teach us also, O great smith of the northern snows,
Those lessons that you learned
To your pain and chagrin:
That love cannot be truly bought with gold,
Or with the most wondrous of possessions.
That affections so bribed will not last.
That slavery brought on unwilling
For the need for affluence and wealth
Will someday be a knife in the back
Of the most comfortable bed.
That you cannot build love
Out of silver and gold.
That you cannot recreate the power
Of the sun and the moon
No matter what your skill.
That in the end, power lies not in the hand
But in the heart, and the heartfelt word.
Teach us, Ilmarinen,
Smith of the northern snows,
That we may share the lessons
That have bent your neck these many years.

(All approach the altar, and each strikes the anvil with the hammer nine times.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

May 1, 2012 [Beltane]

May 1, 2012 [Beltane]

Belatian, also spelled Beltine, Iris Beltaine or Beltaine and Cetamainalso is one of the 8 sacred Sabbats of the Pagans. This festival is held on the first day of May in Ireland and Scotland. Beltane was first mentioned in a glossary to Cormac, bishop of Cashel and King of Munstern, who was killed in 908. Cormac describes how cattle were driven between two bonfires on Beltaine as a magical means of protecting them from disease before they were led into summer pastures. This custom is still observed in Ireland.

Beltane was started to celebrate and Bless the seeds and make happy that winter is over and spring is here. Beltain celebrations and rituals are a fact and still celebrated by Pagans and Wiccans to this very day. The other side of the Beltane is celebrated by Christianity as Maypole day with dancing around the pole. Beltain is a fire ritual/celebration and is celebrated around a bonfire. Dancing and singing go all night long and in the morning, flowers were gathered to make wreaths for the hair.

Beltane is the last of the 3 celebration Sabbaths celebrated by the Ancients and it heralded the beginning of summer. Food supplies were low, people were depressed from the drab cold days of winter and this made Beltane celebration very special. Facts and myths blend together during these celebrations.

May was not an ideal time for the ancients for marriage, thus the year and a day was begun for hand fasting couples. This was considered a trial time for couples, living together before making the marriage legal. So it seems to me the Ancients knew living together and knowing one another before actually marrying made more sense than marring then divorce.

Water was another important aspect of the Beltane celebration. Myths surround the usage of water at this time also. It is said that if you bathe in the dew gathered before dawn on Beltane, your beauty will flourish all year. Those sprinkled with May dew are insured if health and happiness. Other customs such as drinking from a well before sunrise will insure good heath and fortune.

The main color of Beltane is green representing growth, abundance, plentiful harvest, fertility and luck. The use of other colors in Beltane celebrations as well as the whole month of may are used, whites, yellows, pinks, reds, violets and purples representing cleansings, purity, good fortune, fertility, happiness and wealth. So no matter how you choose to celebrate Beltane, rather it be a ritual, dancing around the fire or Maypole, singing and eating natures produce, its a time for happiness and joy to be alive and one with the Goddess. Blessed BeÂ…Â…

 

References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beltane

Morning Prayer

Morning Prayer
by HPS Ezevia Rose
.
This is an ancient disciplined movement similar to TaiChi for morning prayer. As the community drum beats the heartbeat of the Mother the dancers face East. The beginning motion establishes that the two-legged will be a full and open conduit between heaven and earth.

Starting in the East
1. Open the left wing wide (arm) and far, stretching the heart muscle.
2. Open the right wing, knowing one can soar as the eagle.
3. Open the shield (raise both arms up and out towards the sky) revealing oneself to the Great Spirit.
4. Gather from Mother Earth (bending down and imagining to take a gift ) and give up to Father of the Heaven.
5. Gather from the Father of Heaven (reaching out and imaging the gift you will take) and give back to Mother Earth (bending to the ground give your gift to the Mother Earth)
6. Collect what is in your heart and give out to all the people of the world. (tossing into the air the gift of your heart)
7. Gather from the people and replenish what is in the heart bringing harmony between Heaven and Earth.

Continue with the remaining 3 directions (repeating the above motions)

This is the circle of life, the opening and closing, the giving and the receiving, the balance of above and below, the inner and the outer, the up and the down.

We greet the sunrise bringing renewed beauty, hope, faith and health to the dawn of day.

About The Author: HPS Ezevia Rose, Sisters of the Burning Branch, Order of the White Moon; Teacher of young children, singer, musician, herbalist and avid gardener.

Magic: A Young Seeker’s Explanation for Fellow Seekers

Magic: A Young Seeker’s Explanation for Fellow Seekers

Author: Alexander Cheves

Magic was the hardest thing for me to come to terms with on my journey into Paganism and Wicca. I was a young teenage guy, I was logical, and I was brought up by medical professionals in a conservative Southern Baptist household in the wooded countryside of North Georgia. I was taught the value of ethics, education and spiritual discipline, and I were taught that God loves me.

I found Wicca, or Wicca had found me, in the same way that I imagine religion finds most people. We stumble through life searching for meaning, purpose, fulfillment and happiness, and sometimes along that journey we are lucky enough to have rare, beautiful experiences in which we feel truly alive. Sometimes we dismiss them as great feelings, but sometimes we see them as something more. When the latter happens, we feel perhaps like our eyes have opened up and we have arrived home into the warmth of a familiar-feeling idea or deity. We are taken to a place within ourselves in which we find truth, and even greater than truth, a breathtaking sense of purpose: we belong here.

I owe a lot to Christianity. Aside from being a rich and beautiful faith in which I grew in my journey with God, Christianity provided me the spiritual discipline and religious mindset that eventually led me from it. I understood prayer and I understood ritual, the symbolic breaking of bread, the power of music to direct one’s focus and consciousness at something higher. So as I began reading more and more books on the Pagan or Neo-Pagan faiths, primarily Wicca, I readily accepted the concepts of the polytheistic duality of deity, of the God and Goddess, and the pantheistic concept of the natural world being divine as the substance, manifestation and vessel of deity. These concepts, although unlike anything I had ever read before, felt familiar and beautiful and true, and they gave me purpose and made me feel alive. It felt like coming home. But magic (or “magick” as some Wiccans spell it, simply to distinguish it from parlor tricks and entertainment shows) continued to be a stumbling block for me.

Magic happens when I look up at the stars, when I hope, when I place my hand on someone’s shoulder as they cry. When I look up at the stars, I am reminded of my smallness and my uncertainty, and that first and familiar awe is rekindled in me, the awe that I feel when I face all that I don’t know and all that I have to trust. It gives me hope, humility, and a sense of worship – a sense that I am not alone, that I am guided through this. When I hope, I’m projecting my positive energies onto the world around me to make it better. When I place my hand on someone’s shoulder, I am connecting with him or her on the most basic level of human communication: Touch.

Touch is something that starts in the womb and infancy and sustains us throughout our lives. This powerful and simple action is comforting because it connects us to that place of infancy in which we all needed to be held and cared for, and it reminds us on a deep level that life and struggle are shared experiences. But on a surface level, as I touch my friend’s shoulder, all that is occurring is the transference of my warmth, my pulse, the vibration of my cells, the energies that constitute me as a human being, to another person: Magic.

Scott Cunningham in his famous, singular work Wicca: A Guide For the Solitary Practitioner, defines magic as “the projection of natural energies to produce needed effects.” As a Wiccan of five years, I am still learning and growing in my understanding of magic. I have had discussions with many different people and read several different perspectives on the subject of magic. I’ve realized that magic is often what draws people to Wicca. Ideas of personal power and sorcery, casting spells and curses and controlling others are probably very attractive and romantic ideas to those who don’t know what the Wiccan concept of magic really is. As can be seen in the examples above, magic is a natural occurrence. It happens every day.

Cunningham claimed that the energies employed to make magic come from three primary sources: the self, the earth, and deity. As I have studied, I have found these three to be the most common and accepted sources of energy in Wiccan thought. The energy that comes from the self is simply the life force that runs through all living things. We humans gain this energy through food, exercise, breathing, living, from the body’s natural processes and from the power of one’s will. The earth holds energies within its natural phenomena. This is why rocks are commonly used as ritual items in Wicca. Rocks often have molecular qualities that can be medically beneficial to human beings; they act as powerful symbols with which the subconscious mind communicates to our conscious selves; and most of all, rocks and crystals vibrate with the old, raw and natural energies of the earth. Lastly, deity – the divine energy, the God and Goddess, the Great Spirit, God, the All – whatever one may wish to call the forces that guide us – provide us with the greatest source of energy: divine energy.

In common Wiccan thought, the God and Goddess are twin energies that run through everything that exists, and we humans have cast them in our image in order to better understand them. I believe that we are also cast in their image, and are, out of all the living creatures on the planet, the closest to them, for we humans are given the greatest burden and responsibility: to care for the earth and for one another. Divine energy is the core substance of all the other energies, for the energies within ourselves are directed by higher forces, and the energies inherent in the earth are the presence of divinity in nature. In Wicca, there is no distinction between deity and creation. God is both the substance of all that is and also the energy that runs through it. This energy is divine energy.

In Wiccan thought, magic occurs when one takes these energies and uses them to meet practical, real-world needs, such as the need for comfort and money and faith and protection. I have used magic to help my suffering loved ones, to aid in my ability to concentrate and remember information for a test, to help me relax, to help me grieve, to give me faith, to keep me strong when I need to be brave, to give me direction, to help me make a decision, to help me financially, to get me through a hard day – the list goes on. How does one use these energies in order to produce magic?

Many Wiccans use tools and practices, such as ritual, meditation, prayer, and craft-making to create objects that help focus the applied energies, but at the heart of all these is the presence of faith. One must believe that the desired result will happen. Often faith is all it takes.

Finally, over all of this, one must believe that, if the magic doesn’t work, higher forces are guiding the world and are involved in the circumstances that one is trying to influence. If we were left totally in control of our lives, then we would never grow. That is perhaps the greatest religious struggle: trusting deity, and trusting oneself to know when to act and when to let go.

Although a major part of Wicca, the Wiccan understanding of magic is practical and practicable for anyone. Magic has certainly helped me get to where I am now: it guides me through my journey of faith and through my everyday life. Like prayer, it is something I cannot live without. Rather than practice specific, written-down, structured ritual to create magic, I have found that the spontaneous actions and experiences that I create for myself without any ritual tools (wand, stones, bell, salt, water, candles, an altar, etc.) often work the best for me. As my journey has progressed, my earliest teachings of God have been affirmed: education and ethics are essential to my sense of fulfillment, and God loves me.

Once, many years ago, I accidentally found a few books on Wicca when I visited my local Barnes and Nobel. I flipped through them lightly, rejected them all as garbage and left them on the shelf. I felt that surely my religious questioning and my searching was not taking me there. But later, on a cool night in Zambia, Africa, I slept beneath the stars. There was no smog or air pollution, no bright lights, and no cities. There were bush villages in that darkness, which at the most produced smoke columns from cooking fires. Nothing blotted out the sky, and the stars were so clear that they fell to the horizon line. I at last felt the sensation that we are on a large sphere hurtling through space. I was in the stars.

There, in that strange place, I held my breath: I was not alone. I had been brought up to see God, a male, Judeo-Christian deity that was loving and protective. But there in those sweet stars I saw a woman. She and the same wild god that I had known before in Christianity were standing beside each other as equals. She was mother, I was seeing her for the first time, and I was home.

Wherever your journey of life takes you, I wish you only the passion to seek, and to keep seeking. There is magic in these woods and these mountains and down the soft shoreline. There is beauty in all that we see if we just look for it. It is enough to simply see that beauty and not understand it. It is enough to stand before the earth and not know what purpose it serves or from whence it came and still kneel before it in awe.

Footnotes:
Cunningham, Scott. Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner. St. Paul, Minn., U.S.A.: Llewellyn Publications, 1989. Print.

Growing Up Wyrrd

Growing Up Wyrrd

Author: Liofrun

Most of us have at one point or another heard a story from a fellow Pagan about growing up in a Christian family, being disillusioned with the religion they were assigned to and later converting. These stories are one of the more popular personal narratives of NeoPaganism, but we are entering an era when many of the elders of the modern Pagan movement are old or dead and not only have children, but grandchildren who have been raised with their particular flavour of Paganism. I suspect the narrative of NeoPaganism is about to change when these people who grew up Pagan start to tell their stories; however, there is yet another narrative not talked about or told as much as the “I grew up Christian” narrative, and that is the “I just came home” narrative. The latter is mine.

Being a convert can be tough, no doubt about it, and it can be particularly straining on relationships with nonPagan family members, and equally as straining on the convertee, especially when it comes to worldview. Pagans have a distinctly different worldview (a fundamental cognitive orientation that includes one’s views of society, philosophies, ethics, normative postulates, etc.) than that of Christians, who represent the majority narrative on worldview in the world. Many do not know how to deal with it, and many blanket Pagan terms over top of old Christian views they have internalised from being subjected to it for many years.

There are some of us however, who have never internalised the majority narrative, despite being subjected to it. Some time ago, I had the pleasure of reading Robin Artisson’s Reclaiming the Pagan Worldview, which, I think, while it has its flaws (i.e., the rejection of science-I believe this discounts all our ancestors’ work toward Academia) , is an indispensible tome of wisdom for the modern Pagan when it comes to thinking like a Pagan and being Pagan. I believe he is right when he speaks of “some people think that being Pagan is a matter of […] making a blanket rejection of their original beliefs” and not much else. I think many Heathens know it when we see it, and know the importance of seeing the world in a Heathen way, especially the hard polytheists. It is a distinct way of perceptualising the world around you and your experiences and merely placing Pagan terminology over top of internalised perceptualisations can severely stunt your understanding of and experience of Heathenism and Paganism.

Heathenism is not compatible with the Abrahamic worldview, the worldview many of us have been taught since birth, and still more have had it ground into us, forced internalisation from everything from the basics of belief in the supernatural to our modern understanding of secularism and societal philosophies. I agree with Artisson that we need to reclaim that Pagan worldview if we are going to be Pagans. Our ancestors created rich cultures of Pagan philosophy, schooling, democracy and secularism from a distinctly Heathen point of view. Our contemporaries have spent years studying, collaborating and providing us with historical and archaeological references, texts and reconstructions of these rich cultures. Their worldviews have also changed how we see the days of the week, and even how we see time. A Pagan worldview encompasses everything from religious rites to our perception of language and how time passes. To not work toward reclaiming it is to do ourselves, our ancestors and especially our descendents are grievous disservice. This is where my narrative comes in.

I did indeed grow up in a typical “Christian household” but the beliefs were never consistent. No one seemed to be able to decide what, if anything, he or she actually believed. They had more internalised the worldview of their Christian society and feared letting it go, and stepping out of the cage. On the other hand, I grew up spending time at my best friend’s house, whose mother was an Indigenous Wiccan. From my earliest memories I saw nature as sacred and in my dimmest, furthest reaches of childhood memory; I was an animist.

When my friend’s stepmother told me about Paganism, at the age of eight, I felt I had “come home”. Of all the attempts to scar me with Christian worldview, not a single one had succeeded to embed itself in my mind. My friend’s stepmother’s own syncretic views of religion had a much deeper impact and while I didn’t end up Wiccan (I often saw Christian baggage being dragged in. Christians in Pagans’ clothing, as it were, and I rejected it in favour of Reconstructionist paths) , today I still see the world in the same manner, and more so.

In my teenage years when I was just discovering who I was, I began to fear the constant press of Christianity both in the forefront and in my periphery and began to work hard everyday to affect my Wyrd and prevent me from ever internalising Christianity. While I no longer fear Christianity, at the time, my young mind felt it was a severely pressing issue. I sucked up the lore incessantly and constantly looked for patterns of Wyrd and Orlog in my everyday life. Indeed, discovering Theodism and Sinnsreachd and Celtic Recon even changed my views of what Heathenry was, and that not every Reconstructionist shares the same worldview, philosophies or ethics, despite the majority narrative within Heathenry being Ásatrú.

Discovering the concept of Wyrd opened my eyes to a way of seeing and understanding the world I had only the faintest, labelless, wordless glimmer of before. I discovered it in my grade 11 English class, reading a Michael Alexander translation of Beowulf. Beowulf became one of my most treasured tomes of lore for its attempt at interweaving an archaic Heathen worldview with a Christian one, and I felt what must have been the same conflict as did the Christian teller of the tale who added his own elements to what was otherwise a deeply Heathen epic. Christianity, in my natural and carefully cultivated Heathen worldview, was morbid, self-serving and deeply confused about its own ethics. They were too focused on death and on purposeful suffering, and indeed I saw all the Christians in my life suffering in ways I could not empathise with because I had never internalised the shame and the obsession with death that forced them into their continual fear and gloom. And this is often what I see in contemporary Heathens who espouse a distinctly Christian flavour coming from being a convert, or even the children of converts. I see it less so with the “came home” narrative, those of us who had a way of perceiving our world and only later found names for it.

I would advise studying the lore, the history and especially the philosophies of not just our ancestors but the ancestors and elders of all Heathen paths and I would advise deeply connecting it to our everyday life on a daily basis. Heathenry isn’t a Sunday sacrifice, or merely posting on Ásatrú Lore once a week, it’s a way of life, it is how you see the sun when it rises, how you drive to work on a Monday, how you effect your Wyrd with every choice you make. Heathenry is who a Heathen is. No one ever said it was easy, but it’s certainly necessary.

Footnotes:
Sharples, R. W. “Stoics, Epicureans and Sceptics: An Introduction to Hellenistic Philosophy [Paperback].” Amazon.com: Stoics, Epicureans and Sceptics: An Introduction to Hellenistic Philosophy (9780415110358) : R.W. Sharples: Books. Web. 29 Feb. 2012. .

Artisson, Robin, “Reclaiming the Pagan Worldview.” Scribd. Web. 29 Feb. 2012. .

Elder’s Meditation of the Day April 25

Elder’s Meditation of the Day April 25

“Each person’s prayers can help everyone.”

–Thomas Yellowtail, CROW

Prayer is our entrance into the Unseen World. It is by prayer we can call upon the powers and laws of the Great Spirit. The Spirit World has powers and laws that are different from the Physical World. The spiritual laws allow healing to take place; they allow forgiveness to occur; they cause miracles to happen; they cause hate to disappear; they heal broken relationships; they guide every moment of our lives; they allow us to love even when it’s hard. Prayer allows us access to the Spirit World.

Creator, teach me to pray.

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Afternoon Devotion

New Age Comments & Graphics 

Afternoon Devotion

 Dear Mother, my eternal companion, as I

gaze toward the midday sun, tears of joy

well up in my eyes. In everything I see–

the trees, the blue skies, the birds in the

air–I see your beauty and love. 

 

Thank you for calling me to the Wiccan

Way. Thank you for giving me my life.

Thank you for being my eternal mother.

I love you! 

Blessed Be

. 
~Magickal Graphics~

Christian Witchcraft: What it means to me.

Christian Witchcraft: What it means to me.

Author: Pall Tryggr Ageirr

Keep in mind that I am still a seeker, but I believe that I have found a path that speaks to me. Combining my belief in Jesus Christ, and the comforting Holy Spirit (though I see the Holy Spirit in a feminine aspect and as such refer to her as the Mother Holy Spirit, or lady Holy Spirit) , With Pagan ideologies and practices. More specifically I am interested in general Paganism, The Greek Pantheon, The Nordic and Celtic traditions, Wiccan theology, beliefs, and practices, Native American Spirituality/Shamanism, and the art and practice of magick. I am also interested in the Jewish Qabbala and Gnosticism (an unorthodox sect of Christianity that was systematically stamped out by early fundamentalist.)

In essence I am an eclectic since I combine belief systems. I prefer the to label myself as a seeking eclectic Christian Witch, since we as humans have this condition to want to label everything. I grew up in a heavily Christian background, but I questioned a lot of it, and I always felt like other religions and spiritualities have certain truths to them. I am a subscriber to the tree theory which is as follows: The roots of the tree is the unknowable divine energy you cannot see it but you know that it is there. Then there is the tree trunk which manifests to some people as a God or a Goddess or sometimes both…it manifests to me in the form of a God and Goddess. They are two separate entities but they come from the same source – some people will tend to stop there. But if you go on up the tree to the branches that is each individual pantheon (Greek, Roman, Nordic, Celtic, Egyptian, ect.) * I believe other religions can fit on there as well – examples: Christianity, the Jewish faith, Islam, Buddhism, Taoism, ect.* and then if you go even farther to each little twig that is each individual god (s) and goddess (s) . They are all separate yet they flow into the one divine energy.

I whole heartedly believe that mainstream Christianity today is not was Jesus Christ envisioned 2,000 + years ago. I do try to read the Bible as often as possible, and I do believe that it contains good examples to try to live by, but I also believe that it has been “translated” way too many times to suit man’s political agendas of the times. I believe the early Christians after Christ died on the cross, became corrupt and tried to pervert teachings to suit their needs.

Thoughout the gospels Jesus teaches about friendship, tolerance, love and kindness. Things that I rarely see exhibited by Mainstream Christians today.

I do believe Jesus Christ was a profound teacher and a messiah, but I am also a Goddess worshipper. I worship the Mother right along with the Father. I believe in Magick, and I believe it is another valid way to attune with and interact with the divine. As well Magick is another valid form to help affect changes in my life for the better, I believe it is a gift from the divine and as such it should be utilized. I am also a nature worshipper, because divinity created nature and us, therefore nature as well as us humans contain little sparks of divinity. I am mystical, and my spiritual cup runneth over, in ways it never did wheh I was a practing Baptist Christian. I believe that if Jesus Christ was alive today then he would be the witchiest Christian Witch of them all.

When I started this path I thought Christian Witchcraft was in the minority, but as I continue with my studies and down my spiritual path of choice I find more like minded people like me everyday.

We may never be totally accepted in Pagan circles, because Pagans have been persecuted thoughout the centuries by the right-wing Fundamentalist Christians, so the mere mention of Christian influenced spirituality may send some people the wrong message. And on the reverse side, to the right-wing fundamentalist Christians we are seen as heretics, who are misusing the gospels, and who are perverted and in league with the devil because of our magickal and mystical sides. But we are here, and we follow what our hearts, minds, and spirits tell us to do, we do not care about religious dogma, instead we do what we feel is right in our hearts, we worship the God and Goddess and all of their creations and try to use all the things they have given to us. We also rely on the comforting Mother Holy Spirit in times of great sadness, and we try to strive to live by the teachings of our Savior Jesus Christ, and show everyone, Pagan or Christian, or agnostic, or atheist, or Islamic, or Buddhist – just how Christ like we are.

We are loving, and kind, and gracious, and forgiving, atleast we try to be, we are still human we are still flawed we make mistakes, but We listen to our hearts and try to do what we believe is morally right – and we never tell anyone that they are wrong for any spiritual or religious belief they may have, instead we celebrate the diversity.

This is what being a Christian Witch means to me, and I love every second of being one, I honestly have never felt more spiritually fulfilled.

I am still a seeker, yes. But arn’t we all? we should never stop learning.Each day I find something new about myself, my spirituality, and my craft.

Alot of people may not agree with what I have to say, or may not agree with my chosen blend of paths and spiritualities – but this is the blended path that has called to me and I feel this is where I am supposed to be. I do not care about religious dogma, instead I follow my heart and let my spirit and the divine energy ( the Lord and Lady, each individual God and Goddess, Jesus Christ, and the Mother Holy Spirit) Guide me to where they want me to be.

Amazing Grace

Witchy Comments

Amazing Grace
~pagan version~

(Author unknown)

Amazing Grace
How sweet the Earth,
That bore a Witch like me.
I once was burned,
Now I survive.
Was Hanged but now I sing.
‘Twas Grace, That Drew
Down the Moon,
and Grace that Raised
the Seas,
The Magick in,
The people’s Will
Will Set our Mother Free.
We Face The East,
and breathe the winds,
That move across the Earth,
From gentle breeze to hurricane,
our breath will bring forth change.
Turn Towards the South,
and Feel the Fire,
That burns in you and me,
The Spirit’s flame shall rise again,
and Burn Eternally.
We Greet the West
Our Souls awash,
In Tides of Primal Birth,
Our Pain and blood, Our Tears and love
Shall cleanse and heal the Earth.
Reach in to North,
and Know your roots,
Down Deep ancestral Caves.
We find the Wisdom of the Crone,
of Circles we are made.
Amazing Grace
How Sweet the Earth
That bore Witches like We.
We once were burned
Now we survive
were hanged and now we sing.
Goddess bless,
So mote it be
Our Magick Spirals on,
Merry meet and Merry Part
and Merry meet Again.

 
~Magickal Graphics~

Elder’s Meditation of the Day April 16

Elder’s Meditation of the Day April 16

“But one should pray in one’s heart during a sacred ceremony; this is the purpose of the ceremony, to purify the participants both inside and outside.”

–Thomas Yellowtail, CROW

How do you know if you are praying from your heart or from your head? Pray from your head and you will feel nothing; pray from your heart and you will feel feelings. You may feel sorrow, you may feel joy, you may want to cry, depending on what you are praying for. During the ceremony, the cleansing will take place. The Medicine Wheel teaches the four directions of inner power: emotional, mental, physical and spiritual. The prayer controls the emotional, mental and physical. When we ask for purification of our feelings, our mental mind and our physical body, the spiritual direction causes the cleansing to happen.

Great Spirit, create in me a clean heart.

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The Goddess’ Prayer

Goddess Comments & Graphics
The Goddess’ Prayer 

Gracious Goddess

Who art Maiden, Mother, and Crone,

Celebrated be Your Name.

Help me to live in peace

Upon Your EarthAnd grant me safety in

 Your arms.Guide me along my chosen path

And show me Your great eternal love

As I strive to be kind to those

Who don’t understand Your ways

And lead me safely to Your Cauldron of Rebirth

For it is Your Spirit that lives within me

And protects me

Forever and ever.

So Mote It Be.

 

  ~Magickal Graphics~

Chant for Physical Strength

Chant for Physical Strength

Hercules, Great Son of Zeus,

Half God, half human, please unloose

Your great strength and lend it to

me in this thing that I must do.

Grant me now Your nerves of steel

and Your physical strength for this ordeal.

So I can complete successfully

This task that’s set in front of me.

WICCA AND WITCHCRAFT – The Spiritual Seeker’s Guide

WICCA AND WITCHCRAFT
————————————
The Spiritual Seeker’s Guide
Steven S. Sadleir

Wicca, or Witchcraft is the old religion of Europe, which apparently evolved
from Druidism. Wiccan is generally a term applied to a “Wise One” or
“Magician”, and Wicca is the practice of “magic”, which is the application and
utilization of natural laws. As Witchcraft competed as a religion with
Christianity (the ‘new’ religion) in the Christianized Western World, witchcraft
became repressed as a form of paganism (i.e., a Primative Teaching) and was
given an evil stigma, and therefore was not practiced openly. However, with the
repeal of the English Witchcraft Act in 1951, many covens, or congregations,
have opened up to teh public and many new groups have formed. There are now
dozens of Wiccan orgnaizations in the United States and Europe, with perhaps,
thousands of active Wiccans and Witches. Most witches practicing the craft
publicly are considered ‘white’ witches, that is, they yse their knowledge for
good ends and practice the Wiccan Creed: “Ye hurt none, do as ye will.” Black
Witches (which has recieved most of the notoriety, but are considered a
minority) are generally not visible to the public and use thier knowledge for
selfish or evil means. Satanism is NOT considered a form of witchcraft, but was
created by people who believe there is a Satan, or Devil.

Wicca/Witchcraft generally involves some form of God or Goddess worship, and
many involve the workings of spiritual guides as well. Wicca/Witchcraft is a
very individualized religion, and each person chooses his or her own deities to
worship. Generally, the supreme being is considered ‘genderless’ and is
comprised of many aspects that may be identified as masculine or feminine in
nature, and thus a God or Goddess. Originally, the horned God of hunting
represented the maculine facet of the deity, whereas the female qualities were
represented in the fertility Goddess. The Gods and Goddesses from the
personalities of the supreme being, and are a reflection of the attributes that
worshippers seek to emulate. Wiccans may draw upon the ancient civilizations of
the Druids, Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, or other polytheistic cultures to
commune with the particular aspect of the deity that they identify with. Some
favorite gods include Osiris, Pan, Cennunnos, and Bacchus. Facotie Goddesses
include Isis, Caridwen, Rhea, Selene, and Diana.

Wiccans generally observe the four greater Sabbaths of Samhain, Imbolc,
Beltane, and Laghnasadh; and the lesser Sabbaths – the Spring and autumn
equinoxes and the summer and winter solstices. There celebrations are typically
free-spirited, and are sometimes held ‘skyclad’ (naked) or in various styles of
robes. Other services include handfasting (marriage), handparting (divorce) and
wiccaning (birth rite). Regular meetings, called Esbats are also held, at which
magic and healing are performed. Wiccans/witches meet in small groups (up to
twelve) called a coven, whcih typically join with other covens to form a
‘Grove’.

Rituals are typically held outside and consist of forma a circle and
erecting the temple (consecrating the circle); invoking, praising, and
soliciting assistance from gods, goddesses, and elementals; observing the change
of season and energies represented by the various seasons; singing; dancaing;
‘cakes and ale’ (sharing of bread and wine); and clearing the temple. Personal
practive includes meditation and prayer, divination, development of personal
will and psychic abilities through spells and various forms of healing. Most
Wiccans/witches have altars where they burn candles and incense and practice
thier rites. To perform thier rites, other tools of the craft are used, such as
an athame, yag-disk or, seaux (a handmade and consecrated knife), a sword, a
wand, and sometimes special jewelry, amulets or talismans (magically empowered
objects). Sometimes these objects are inscribed with magical writings. Joining
a coven or grove typically involves an initiation, which is stylized by each
individual group, but generally involves the confirmation that the initiate
understands the principals and an oath of secrecy.

Magic, Prayer and Props: Symbols of Receptivity and Creativity

Magic, Prayer and Props: Symbols of Receptivity and Creativity
image
Author: Ali

“Ritual is poetry in the realm of acts.” — Ross Nichols, founder of OBOD

Is magic simply “prayer with props, ” or is it something more? It seems to me that there is a fundamental difference between “prayer” and “magic.” Let’s start by looking first at the common definitions of these words:

prayer (noun)
– A reverent petition made to God, a god, or another object of worship.
– The act of making a reverent petition to God, a god, or another object of worship.
– An act of communion with God, a god, or another object of worship, such as in devotion, confession, praise, or thanksgiving.
– A specially worded form used to address God, a god, or another object of worship.

magic (noun)
– The art that purports to control or forecast natural events, effects, or forces by invoking the supernatural.
– The practice of using charms, spells, or rituals to attempt to produce supernatural effects or control events in nature.
– The charms, spells, and rituals so used.

I’ve quoted only the first and most relevant definitions for each word, though these few uses listed above should give us a general idea to start. Even though the definitions of “prayer” and “magic” reach far beyond these summary definitions, these simplest explanations of each word seem to have little in common.

“Prayer” is a kind of petition or, more generally, a communion or communication with deity; “magic, ” on the other hand, has to do with personal will and gaining control over reality.

Of course, these definitions are limited. Many Christians would be insulted to think of prayer as merely groveling at the feet of God, begging for favors like weak but selfish children. Likewise, many Witches and Pagans would object that magic is much less about exerting control over the external world, and much more concerned with working in harmony with the energies and forces that unite the individual with the rest of reality.

Furthermore, both prayer and magic are more generally directed at change–either through the intervention of deity, or by personal will. If we take the broader understanding of “prayer” and “magic” into consideration, we might define prayer as “communion with deity through thought and word, aimed at making room for Divine to act in one’s life;” and magic as “prayer–that is, communion with the Divine, aimed at making room for its activity–through the use of physical tools and ritual actions in addition to thought and word.”

While some might be content with these definitions, they’re not enough for me. I want to dig more deeply into the subtleties and nuances of each word.

Prayer: To me, prayer is above all communion and communication with the Divine. This can take the form of centering prayer or meditation, or it can be something we do everyday, like washing dishes or walking the dog. It is a time to “talk” to deity, yes, but above all it is a time tolisten. Prayer is ideally a way of paying attention to that “still small voice.”

Often when we pray out loud and spontaneously out of great distress or need, we articulate fears and anxieties we may not even know about consciously. We don’t need to tell Spirit what it already knows, but the real benefit of prayer is to listen to ourselves, to find out what we are really asking for and begin to consider if that is what we really need or want.

I often find myself saying things during prayer I would never have verbalized otherwise. Other times, I simply break down into overwhelmed murmurs of “I love You so much!” While I feel a bit silly, I’m also reassured because I can say so and mean it.

Prayer is a way of bringing oneself into a better awareness of and connection to the Divine. Anything can be prayer–it can be verbalized or silent, motionless or a kind of dancing, or even work itself.

When I write poetry, I am praying.

When I laugh, I am praying.

When I eat, I am praying.

Each of these activities reminds me of my connection with the Divine, and reminds me to listen, to pay attention.

Magic: Magic goes a step further. Prayer is largely passive, focusing on listening and paying attention (stilling ourselves and our clamoring desires long enough to make room for Spirit’s reply) . But magic is active.

The focus on control and personal will, although somewhat shallow and misdirected, does give us some insight. After all, is our goal as spiritual beings to deny our free will and become mindless robots of Spirit? Or do we accept free will as a gift and exercise it with love and wisdom, bringing personal will intoharmony with Divine will?

Do we see Spirit as a cult-leader; or that which wants participation, not subordination?

Magic is how we participate. It is how we manifest the communion of prayer in the world so that it can change us and change others. Prayer is necessary for magic–we must communicate with the Divine and pay attention in order to be in harmony with it.

When we act in harmony, we can be creative and free, without being arrogant or cut-off from Spirit.

While magic in general might be the practice of exerting personal will arbitrarily on the world, sacred magic, informed by prayer (communion and listening), is an act of creation in harmony with Spirit.

What do I mean? I’ll give you an example. When I free-write a rough draft of a poem, I am praying–I quiet myself down and listen to what that Divine voice within me articulates spontaneously. But, when I return to the poem, revise it, craft it into a work of art that does something andchanges the reader and the world, I am performing magic. Writing is the best example of how magic does not need “tools” or “props.”

Magic is about creation and change, not about what tools you use. A great work of poetry changes the world, and the writer knows that the piece comes not from her, but through her–it has her “flavor”, but its ultimate source is something greater.

Similarly, other forms of magic change the world, and the individual practitioner, through creative acts. Sacred magic is essentially creative–it brings something new into being and, thus, changes the world. It expresses the Divine Unity in a new, particular and unique way.

Prayer reminds us of our source; magic is the active participation in the paradox that that source is expressed through particulars. Prayer is the necessary foundation of magic, and magic is the natural fruit of prayer. They have many of the same goals, but they are different.

To call magic simply “prayer with props” would be to ignore the active, creative side of our own participation in the Divine. The results of magic are, essentially, miracles. But all miracles require human participation–we plunge our staffs into the sea, we anoint the sick with oil, we bless the shared meal.

We listen, we pray, we contemplate–and then, we act, we create, we participate.


Footnotes:
Originally posted in Pulse Like Water, March 15, 2005

Oh, in case you check…..

You will notice, I got to playing and made new graphics for the “Monthly Goddess, Herb & Crystal.” I also added a new one “Pagan Events.” None of these are accurate right now. They all are linked to the right page, but I have not updated the information yet. The “Pagan Events” doesn’t even have a page to link to yet. I am planning on getting that update today or tonight. I just wanted to let you know. I didn’t want you to think I was laying down on the job again, lol!

I hope you enjoy these sections and the new section. I know I enjoy doing them for you. Now let’s get down to business……

Elder’s Meditation of the Day – April 6

Elder’s Meditation of the Day – April 6

“Everybody should pray together, cheer along, root along. That brings the circle together. Everything is together.”

–Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA

Life on the Earth can sometimes be very complicated. Sometimes we think we are alone in our problems. Sometime we even withdraw. Then the problems become even more difficult. We need to watch out for one another, to care for one another, to pray together, to encourage one another; and we need to support one another. Behaving in this manner will bring the circle together.

Great Spirit, today, let me support my brothers and sisters.

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April 6 – Daily Feast

April 6 – Daily Feast

These are times when it pays to take a second look – to really pay attention to those things that cross our paths. We may have already missed a wonderful experience by hasty judgment. When quick judgments are made from a limited point of view, the good qualities of anything are hidden. It is essential to look beyond first impressions if we are ever to find a rare jewel. Even Galun lati is helpless to send us blessing if we are dull of spirit and incapacitated by our own smart minds. In our “expert” attitudes, we sometimes allow the very things that would make us peaceful and happy pass by without lifting a hand. Wisdom is being able to see quality in the rough – and then being gentle and patient enough to shape it to perfection.

~ How can we trust you? When Jesus Christ came on earth, you killed him and nailed him to a cross. ~

TECUMSEH 1810

‘A Cherokee Feast of Days’, by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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March 29 – Daily Feast

March 29 – Daily Feast

Nothing ever remains quite the same – but a time comes when we have to follow new guidelines and think new thoughts and do new things. It does not take a superhuman, but it does take a believer – a worker with ears to hear and eyes to see – not just the physical but the spiritual. We cannot take for granted that any other human can have accurate perception and spell things out for us. The miracles are not all in other heads, other hands, other methods. There must be a burst of inner fire that sparks a miracle, that opens a door to a greater life, a greater calm. We are never so blind as when we close ourselves off by our critical views, our hardened hearts, our failure to perceive the greatness of gentle things. O friend, look away from lack and need and pain. Alter your vision and it will alter life.

~ O, great blue sky; see me roaming here. I trust in you, protect me! ~

PAWNEE

‘A Cherokee Feast of Days’, by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

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Pagans: Loved, Yet Misunderstood

Pagans: Loved, Yet Misunderstood

Author: Davina Sullivan

“We are loved, yet misunderstood.”

Within the last few months, I have recently explained to my friends and family that I am a Pagan, and more than proud to say so. I have been asked so many questions sense then, it’s unbelievable. However, I’m glad that they asked because I’ve realized that many people in general has such a high misunderstanding, that we Pagan’s are judged unfairly. I have the opportunity to be able to help others understand and not judge us based on the word of others.

I was raised in a Baptist family, therefore, a great many of my relatives were upset, confused, hurt, or a combination of all three. My mother particularly, believed that being a Pagan was the devil’s way of tricking us into worshipping him, specifically because of the pentagram. I calmly explained to her that yes, the five-point star originated from the Pagan religion. After, that same star also became the Star of Bethlehem, which represents Jesus’ birth and carnation in the Christian religion. The bible explains this in the book of Matthews in chapter two. Lastly, Satanists took the five-point star and turned it upside down to claim as their own.

The image of the devil was the most difficult questions to answer. Even though I had explained that the image of Satan also originated from a Greek God, the Horned God named Pan. He has horns as well as hooves and carries a flute. That is where Satan’s image originated. Many didn’t want to hear my explanations or did not believe it to be so. Of course, everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. I only talk of the questions that people ask.

Another explanation that was quite interesting to give was the use of magic. I was asked questions such as, “How do you do magic?” “Why do you think magic is real?” “Don’t you think that God is the only one that can bring magic?” There was one question that I found very surprising, which was, “Will you teach me to do magic?”

When I was asked how to do magic, I simply explained that magic is just channeling what is already there. You are working as one with the elements of the earth to bring the God’s and Goddesses into your heart and soul to walk together into the Divine. This also brought questions about. However, I truly believe that no one can answer what the Divine is but you, and only when you feel it.

Those that has asked me why I believe magic to be real, this was the easiest explanation of all. Every time I answer this question, I smile and reply, “Because I’ve felt it. I’ve been there. I’ve become one with magic and have become one with The Divine.” Some are confused at this point, but the answer to this specific question is something only you can answer for yourself.

Many were respectful, many horrified at my response to God being the only one that can bring magic into my life. I respect those that live by the bible and God’s word. Though, I truly feel the connection with the Pagan God’s and Goddesses. My personal Goddess, Isis, has brought a light and a great sense of fulfillment into my life. I call upon her often and the magic that I have done and experienced is unexplainable. For someone who does not believe magic to be true, it will sound like nonsense to them. Until they experience magic for themselves and can answer that same question for me, there is nothing that I could say to them about working with Earth Mother to do magic.

There was one person and one person only who asked me to teach her magic. She is a very good friend of mine. I explained a few basics of my religion, and explained to her that being a witch and learning of magic by doing your own personal studies and research is the first step. Being a witch is something to be taken very seriously and to understand every aspect of everything or any spell before attempting to actually performing one. I also explained that I have seen those dabble in black magic, and that is something that will bring you sorrow and pain in the long run. ‘An ye’ harm none, do as ye’ will.’ I most defiantly expressed how important it is to keep the Three Fold Law in mind.

The purpose for me writing this paper is to express to anyone that is willing to listen that you should always be proud of who and what you are. It has taken me 24 years to find my path because it is sometimes difficult to step away from what you are so accustomed to and be able to search for your true self.

Religion, regardless of what it may be is a big part of every one person’s life. To lie and hide from your self is the most painful lie that anyone could tell. To be a witch is hard, it is difficult, it can be stressful and it can seem almost impossible to be accepted by society at times. In today’s world, yes, we need to be in society in some way, shape or form. Just remember, we are no better, nor are we any worse than any other person that may walk this glorious earth. Paganism is rejected by many, but accepted and loved by so many more. We have support and family to help us through these times.

Today, we have the wonderful world of technology! Take advantage of it. Witchvox.com is only the start. Wiccantogether.com is a lot like a myspace.com page for Wiccans. There’s plenty of ways on the Internet, not to mention the people around you that you have no idea are even there to help you.

I cannot express enough how strongly I believe that there are many that are afraid to be their true selves because of societies opinions of our religion. Be strong, stand tall, and be proud of who you are. Please, help, love and support those who need us.

In conclusion, we are loved, yet misunderstood. This is not our fault; this is our pride. I’m more than willing to help those who are misunderstood to understand. No matter the outcome may be, I am who I am. I’m being true to myself, and that is what is most important in my opinion.

The Wicca Book of Days for March 16th – Gabriel, the Go-between

The Wicca Book of Days for March 16th

Gabriel, the Go-Between

As a Piscean day, March 16’s astrological element is Water, which in esoteric belief, is in turn associated with Gabriel. Gabriel’s correspondences also include Winter and the West, the direction in which you should turn when invoking this Archangel. In Christianity, Gabriel is best known as the messenger from God who announced her impending motherhood to the Virgin Mary, but he is specifically mentioned by name in the old Testament Book of Daniel as helping Daniel to interpret his visions. And in the apocryphal Book of Enoch, Gabriel is “one of the holy angels who is (watches) over Paradise and the serpents and the Cherubim.

Seeking Guidance

If you are puzzling over an enigmatic dream or vision, try respectfully requesting from Gabriel the same help that he gave Daniel. You may be blessed to feel the presence of this angelic being with you, ready “to give thee skill and understanding.” (Daniel 9:22)

*Remember there are various Pagan Traditions that use Saints and Archangels in their Religious Practices.