So Mote It Be.
She’s Been Waiting
She’s been waiting
She’s been waiting, waiting.
She’s been waiting so long.
She’s been waiting for her children
To remember, to return.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The lovers of the lady.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The mother, maiden, crone.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The ones who dance together.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The ones who dance alone.
She’s been waiting, waiting.
She’s been waiting so long.
She’s been waiting for her children
To remember, to return.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The ones who work in silence.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The ones who shout and scream.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The movers and the changes.
Blessed be, and blessed are,
The dreamers and the dream.
She’s been waiting, waiting.
She’s been waiting so long.
She’s been waiting for her children
To remember, to return.
– Paula Walowitz
Elder’s Meditation of the Day – December 2
“The smarter a man is the more he needs God to protect him from thinking he knows everything.”
–George Webb, PIMA
A spiritual person needs to be careful. The more confident we are, the more likely our egos will get us into trouble. It’s relatively easy to become self-righteous. We start to think we are teachers and others are students. We start to judge others. We start, very subtlety at first, to play God. After a while we really get good at it. This is very dangerous. We need to remind ourselves, we are here to do God’s will. We need to pray every morning. Each day we need to check in with God to see what He would have us do. At night we need to spend time with God and review our day. By doing these things, we will stay on track.
My Creator, guide my path and show me how to correct my life.
‘THINK on THESE THINGS’
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler
You speak to me of faith and the church you attend. The most important faith will be the way you feel about it within you. Don’t ever let anyone tell you that it is too unsophisticated to think about such things. For it is the very basis on which you draw your breath. Without faith there’s no hope.
The most beautiful thing about life is that we can begin it anew each day. We need to forget every unpleasant thing that has ever happened to us, every shallow thing that has no meaning, every unkind word or deed or thought and start all over again.
And the only possible way to do it is by faith. Faith in yourself, faith in others, faith in God, and faith that right will win. And facetiously stated, “Them that has, gits.” If you have a little faith, it will attract more – if you know about it within you.
The bright blue of the sky
is Her eyes in the morning.
The sunshine, Her love glowing
in the morning’s birth.
The soft calling of birds
is Her singing to Her people.
The breeze, Her arms embracing the world.
Gentle Lady,
Watch over me as I find my path in life.
Guide my steps. Bring me to the end of
the day fulfilled.
Keep those I love safe. Goddess,
be at the side of those who need you.
And may they always be worthy of your devotion.
So Mote It Be
The power of gathering together is represented by a rally, where each individual’s strength is magnified by the power of their community. History has shown that mass movements can bring about stable, ordered and durable conditions for the better. This hexagram may be pointing to an auspicious time for large undertakings. But the guiding force of your shared vision is essential to hold the forces of unity together, and keep them advancing toward a common goals and values.
Another image for this situation is that of a lake filling with water. Just as the fullness of the lake can bring good fortune to all in its sphere, it can also overflow, leading to calamity. Thus in a time of gathering together it is essential that precautions against excesses be considered along with efforts to advance along a clearly-charted course. Much of human misfortune comes from unexpected events for which we are ill prepared; when gathered together with others, we are both more powerful and, in some ways, also more vulnerable.
Any time of unified coming together is a time of great potential. But the potential can be both positive and negative. Everything is magnified when people unite around a central shared purpose. When many people unite behind a single goal or strong vision, it is wise to take personal precautions to protect your own reasonable self-interests, because these can easily be lost in the crowd.
‘Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy! Our life, our sweetness, and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn, then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exiles show unto us the blessed fruit of they womb, Jesus. Oh clement, oh loving, oh sweet Virgin Mary.’ It’s ‘Virgin Mary Day,’ that’s why.
By Ellen Whitehurst for Astrology.com
‘THINK on THESE THINGS’
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler
In those moments when we quietly sit with mind centered on the fact that God is only good, and that no situation devious or twisted in appearance, has any power except that which we give it by dwelling on how terrible it is – then, there is hope.
If we can become quiet enough in our own minds to know God is good, it will produce one of those times of sweet serenity that settles like an invisible veil between us and our troubles. In those moments of growth and faith will come peace that passes all understanding.
It is good to live an active life, but some of life’s most productive moments are not when the mind and body are hurled through hectic hours at a furious pace. Life offers many tender and beautiful times that demand nothing and give only a quiet calm that will never come in pill form.
Contrary to the belief in any power except God’s, there is a happy medium. It does not come simply by demanding, and there are times when it can be touched on only so briefly. But even in our sore travails there is a time when life finds balance and we live in harmony with God’s laws.
Available online! ‘Cherokee Feast of Days’
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler.
Teiwatz/Warrior
| You can’t do anything but stay out of your own way. Nothing less is asked of you but to look within, be patient and accept whatever is coming your way. Courage, devotion, perseverance and patience and the knowledge that you have the strength within, will help you to make another step towards wholeness. |
When she was 56, Angela Merici said “No” to the Pope. She was aware that Clement VII was offering her a great honor and a great opportunity to serve when he asked her to take charge of a religious order of nursing sisters. But Angela knew that nursing was not what God had called her to do with her life.
She had just returned from a trip to the Holy Land. On the way there she had fallen ill and become blind. Nevertheless, she insisted on continuing her pilgrimage and toured the holy sites with the devotion of her heart rather than her eyes. On the way back she had recovered her sight. But this must have been a reminder to her not to shut her eyes to the needs she saw around her, not to shut her heart to God’s call.
All around her hometown she saw poor girls with no education and no hope. In the fifteenth and sixteenth century that Angela lived in, education for women was for the rich or for nuns. Angela herself had learned everything on her own. Her parents had died when she was ten and she had gone to live with an uncle. She was deeply disturbed when her sister died without receiving the sacraments. A vision reassured her that her sister was safe in God’s care — and also prompted her to dedicate her life to God.
When her uncle died, she returned to her hometown and began to notice how little education the girls had. But who would teach them? Times were much different then. Women weren’t allowed to be teachers and unmarried women were not supposed to go out by themselves — even to serve others. Nuns were the best educated women but they weren’t allowed to leave their cloisters. There were no teaching orders of sisters like we have today.
But in the meantime, these girls grew up without education in religion or anything at all.
These girls weren’t being helped by the old ways, so Angela invented a new way. She brought together a group of unmarried women, fellow Franciscan tertiaries and other friends, who went out into the streets to gather up the girls they saw and teach them. These women had little money and no power, but were bound together by their dedication to education and commitment to Christ. Living in their own homes, they met for prayer and classes where Angela reminded them, ” Reflect that in reality you have a greater need to serve [the poor] than they have of your service.” They were so successful in their service that Angela was asked to bring her innovative approach to education to other cities, and impressed many people, including the pope.
Though she turned him down, perhaps the pope’s request gave her the inspiration or the push to make her little group more formal. Although it was never a religious order in her lifetime, Angela’s Company of Saint Ursula, or the Ursulines, was the first group of women religious to work outside the cloister and the first teaching order of women.
It took many years of frustration before Angela’s radical ideas of education for all and unmarried women in service were accepted. They are commonplace to us now because people like Angela wanted to help others no matter what the cost. Angela reminds us of her approach to change: “Beware of trying to accomplish anything by force, for God has given every single person free will and desires to constrain none; he merely shows them the way, invites them and counsels them.”
Saint Angela Merici reassured her Sisters who were afraid to lose her in death: “I shall continue to be more alive than I was in this life, and I shall see you better and shall love more the good deeds which I shall see you doing continually, and I shall be able to help you more.” She died in 1540, at about seventy years old.
In Her Footsteps:
Take a look around you. Instead of just driving or walking without paying attention today, open your eyes to the needs you see along the way. What people do you notice who need help but who are not being helped? What are their true needs? Make a commitment to help them in some way.
Prayer:
Saint Angela, you were not afraid of change. You did not let stereotypes keep you from serving. Help us to overcome our fear of change in order to follow God’s call and allow others to follow theirs. Amen
by Terry Matz
As in the olden days, a high priest or priestess usually performs the handfasting ceremony either outdoors or in a place of worship, such as a Christian church. Rings are exchanged to symbolize unbroken union and the eternal circle of life It is interesting to note that the wedding ring, which is traditionally worn on the fourth finger of the left hand, came to be place there because our ancestors believed that it sat over an artery that ran directly from the hand to the heart.
The high priest or priestess is traditionally clothed in a gothic-style outfit, usually in green, gold or lavender. These outfits typically include ornate headdresses, and the priestess may wear a crown graced with a variety of crystals and feathers. These high-ranking clergy are mostly mature members of covens who have a wealth of knowledge about spell casting and all things magickal.
Prayer for the Fourth of July
Gods of liberty, goddesses of justice,
watch over those who would fight for our freedoms.
May freedom be given to all people,
around the world,
no matter what their faith.
Keep our soldiers safe from harm,
and protect them in your light,
so that they may return to their families
and their homes.
Goddesses of liberty, gods of justice,
hear our call, and light the sky,
your torch shining in the night,
that we may find our way back to you,
and bring people together, in unity.
Deity of the Day
Arawn
Welsh god of the underworld. Legend has it that the god Amaethon stole from him a dog, a lapwing and a roebuck, which led to the Battle of the Trees in which his forces were defeated. Another legend relates that Arawn persuaded the god Pwyll, to trade places with him for a year and a day. During which time Pwyll defeated Arawn’s rival, the god Hafgan for dominance of the underworld. Because Pwyll refrained for sleeping with Arawn’s wife during this time, the two became great friends. Arawn then bestowed on Pwyll the title “Lord of the Otherworld”.
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