Kid friendly Open Full Moon schedule (Walnut Hill Community Church) 2025 OFM Potluck and Pagan Wiccan Ritual Saturdays Denver Colorado 80205

Announcing three big things: Future blog updates will be on Confessions of an American Witch. There is a Child Friendly Open Full Moon Saturday in the Denver, Colorado 80205 area, being hosted by a public school teacher. Oh most importantly, it's being held at Walnut Hill Alchemy (2727 N. Cook St.); we are just north of the Denver Zoo and City Golf Course. It's residential area. As my ghost dad says, "Business in the front, living in the back." Yes, I have gone back into sin--selling herbal magick kits again.

Disguised as a normal muggle house.

Yeah, I have gone back to being a slut minister. And by that, I mean purely by accident, I read the homepage of the community church that I used to be a gang member of.

"Suggested donation: Twenty dollars. Do not inebriated."

With no indication of what the Capital Hill Open Full Moon Friday theme will be about. 

I can do better. What to see better? My wife, Khari, is a public school teacher. We just brought a grape vine. On a Saturday. The fifty-eighth birthday of my ghost wife.

Yes, I have a ghost wife now. Cassandra Ravenspell. My life's complicated. New blog. 

Anyways, here's the Walnut Hill Community Church Open Full Moon Saturday 2025 schedule.

Walnut Hill Open Full Moon Saturdays

2025 free to attend, kid friendly, medical marijuana minister pagan Wiccan Norse Egyptian events

We borrow from many things.

May 10 (Botanic Garden Field Trip)

June 14 (Drumming)

June 21 (Golden Dawn Outer Order/RC Inner/Justice 42/Edgar)

July 12 (Hotdogs, popsicles and pools . . . blame Khari)

August 9

September 6

October 4

November 1 (Day of the Dead . . . again Khari)

December 6 (Yule ornament . . . shop will have kits for sale)

Hosts: Walnut Hill Church

Morgan Drake Eckstein (licensed minister)

Khari Seshat Meret (school teacher/ ceramic artist)

Location: 2727 N. Cook St., Denver, Colorado 80205

We are just north of the city zoo and golf course complex in a residential area. "Walnut Hill" is the name of the housing development that our house is located in. Originally, every lot had a black walnut tree. A disease killed all of the trees . . . except we have one. Fighting on. Hence Walnut Hill This and Walnut Hill That and Walnut Hill XYZ on every company in my neighborhood. 

When: Gate open at 5 pm for workers; 6 pm for the potluck; 7 pm for the main event; we close at 10 pm . . . because we are in a family neighborhood.

Kid friendly is a relative term. I might be radioactive shop owner.

Now, that we have advertised Khari's most important stuff, she wanted me to waste time on Facebook to announce that I am cohosting events with her. I believed that I have reached more people. As in horrified more mothers. Here. Than on Facebook. I think. 

Because I used to blog here a lot. By blog here a lot, I mean, I used to offend some of you a lot. I could tell by the richness of the language that you used in my comment section. 

Then Khari made me quit blogging, go off to college, get an education, and I accomplished nothing. Peeked in here, the other day while she out of town, learning stuff for Bearfest, being slave to the future of pagan and Wiccan children, and I was shocked to see traffic. 

If only I could figure out how to turn eyeballs into dollars, but I ain't that smart. 

No, I am falling back on my Retirement Plan--writing slutty science fiction. 

Oh, trying to sell herbs at my wife's OFMs. "C'mon, you need mugwort. Persian catmint."

No? Sad face. How about a course called Rocky Mountain Egyptian Godforms "originally priced at $360 for a thirteen week course, cohosted by Hierophant Khari." No?

Just for that, you have to punch in Confessions of an American Witch into your favorite search engine on your own. Because you didn't throw money at Khari. I tell you that she is Second Order Golden Dawn. Not going to be Hermetic. Something Egyptian. Good times. But it's a new blog, a new voice, a new outlook; we have a grape vine. 

A grape vine, named after one of Khari's students. Because during Teacher's Thanksgiving Week, his family gave Khari, a gift card that covered the cost of the grape vine. Of course, having just read the website of a church that threw me out under Safe and Sober, while celebrating of life of a dead mentor, having barely escaped Hell myself last year, secretly having a daughter (maybe), buying a grape vine set off a lot in my head.

Oh well, I picked up the blogging needle again. Just a different home. 

But Facebook? Really? Nah.

I see no intention in this little vine to rule the world, do you?

Paganism 101--An Introduction to Paganism by 101 Pagans (quick and dirty book review)

When I first heard of this book, I muttered, "Do we really need another Paganism 101 book?"


After reading it, I have to say, "Hell, yes, we needed another one."


The concept behind the book is to have a 101 different pagans get together and write about paganism. Think of it as a big circle where various voices of the paganism came together to give a newcomer a broad overview of how varied the community really is. You may not agree with all the voices, but you have to remember that they are out there in the community.


The book is divided into three sections with multiple topics in each one. Twenty topics all together. Each topic has five writers committing on it. Plus there is an introduction...which is how the 101st pagan comes into the picture.


The first section is Who we are--Druid, Heathen, Witch, Wiccan, Shaman, Christo-Pagan, Goddess Follower, Eclectic Witch.


The second section is What we believe--Deities, Nature, Ethics, Afterlife, Ancestors, Past & Present.


The third section is What we do--Ritual, Magic, Prayer & Meditation, Healing, Herbalism, Celebrant Work.


No, I do not agree with everything said, but I do find it marvelous that we have such diverse set of voices in the community.


I highly recommend this book to both newcomers and to those who have been around the pagan block countless times. This is a wonderful book that I am going to end up re-reading several times, if only to remind myself how interesting our community actually is.


Five stars out of five.


[Disclosure: I received a pre-publication electronic copy of this book for review purposes.]

Am I a Demonolator?

Looking over my list of things I want to blog about in the near future, I realized that the question of "Am I a Demonolator?" is going to come up at some point...so I just as well get it over with.

And in all honesty, most of my regular readers and friends have already made up their minds about this question--for those people who feel that they already know the answer, feel free to wander off because nothing that I am about to say is going to change your mind.

Now, for the rest of you, mainly those who just accidently stumbled across this blog while googling "demonolatry"...

I do not consider myself to be a demonolator. But I can see how someone might believe that I am. And they might be right...of course, that last part probably needs some explanation. So here goes...

My preferred definition of Demonolatry is the ACTIVE worship of demons and/or the use of entities commonly known as demons to perform magic as the PRINCIPAL AGENT in the ritual and/or the consulting of demons as the PRINCIPAL SOURCE to learn magical techniques.

Please note my emphasis on the "active" part. I don't consider the passive use of demons in magic to be demonolatry. And there is a lot of passive use of demons in ceremonial magic, even in the holy grimoiric and Golden Dawn varieties. Also note my emphasis on demons having to be the "principal agent" or "principal source."

By "principal agent," I mean that the highest name used in a ritual or spell is actually the name of entity classified by the grimoires or folklore as a demon. In other words, the controlling force in the ritual is a demon, not one of the Christian/Hebrew names of God, nor is it a pagan deity. Please note that if the pagan deity has been demonized by the Church, then it is a demon if you are using the grimoire version of the deity--but not a demon if you are using a pagan version of the deity.

And by "principal source," I mean that you are calling directly on the demon, without using compulsion of the Christian/Hebrew godnames, and using a demon as the principal agent to control and empower the ritual.

The reason for this emphasis is the simple fact that modern-day Christianity is basically the King James translation of the Bible with a dollop of Dante and Milton tossed in for good measure--basically, any god other than Jesus (and his Father) is a demon, and goddesses are automatically demonesses. Yes, there are exceptions, but at the most severe level--all magicians are demonolators as far as radical Christianity is concerned. (In fact, the more radical the sect of Christianity, the more likely that only Christians of a particular sect are considered to be truly saved Christians, with the majority of Christians also being Satanists simply because they do not belong to the right church.) Therefore, if you are a magician, then you too are a demonolator to quite a few people...people whose opinions I generally ignore.

So my dear reader, you can see how some people could consider my worship of Bast as proof that I am a demonolator by their definition of the terms; but by my definition, I am not even close to being a demonolator because I am using a non-Milton/non-grimoiric form of Bast. (For the non-literate people: Milton classified all the Ancient Egyptian deities as fallen angels serving in Lucifer's war machine--a point that annoys me as a modern pagan.)

There is also a guilt by association that some might accuse me of. Yes, I have friends in the demonolator community. Yes, I have borrowed working techniques and ideas from some of them. But if you insist on guilt by association, then I am also a radical member of the Tea Party branch of the Republican party who believes that all laws should be based solely on the Bible because some of my friends on Facebook believe such things. Therefore, guilt by association has to be tossed out...because everyone is guilty of something by that standard.

Another related question is: Are demonolators Satanists? To this one, I always have to ask: Have you met and encountered first-hand many Satanists? Because those people who brag about being Satanists generally only worship themselves and/or are doing it for pure shock value, and would not know what a demon was if it bit them in the ass. Therefore, even if I was a demonolator, I would not want to be called a Satanist. (This connection is along the lines of saying that all users of the Elder Futhark [runes] are Neo-Nazis--a suggestion that might get you punched in the face by a big bearded Viking dude.) Of course, as a magician, according to radical Christians, I am automatically a Satanist even if I do not believe in his existence--therefore, I suppose to many people demonolators are automatically Satanists, even if the idea would get them punched in the face at some point. And please note that one really needs to know the context that the name/term Satan is used by a demonolator to be able to answer this question...just for that individual (there is no blanket answer here as far as I am concerned)--plus, I know one demonolator that uses Lilith as their Principal Agent--that makes them a Lilithist, not a Satanist (they like to point out that Satan in the Old Testament is a name of an office, and not an individual--therefore worshipping Satan is like worshipping a nameless lawyer).

And if you read this far, I bet that you still have the same opinion on whether or not, I am a demonolator as you did before you started reading it. The demonolators and radical Christians who thought that I was a closet demonolator before still think that--pointing out gleefully that I am just playing word games here. The pagans and Wiccans who thought that I was a pagan and/or Wicca are still thinking that. And my three favorite critics are still considering screaming at the top of their lungs that I am a very evil man. In other words, no opinion has ever been changed by a blog post...simply because you are not going to use my definition of demonolator if it does not already fit your world view. Which begs the question of: Why even bother? Answer: I love Google.

Proper Samhain

Bribes might change our opinion of your numptiness.

Exactly one year ago, someone posted a post on one of the forums wishing everyone a Happy Proper Samhain--which made me aware of this particular issue that was silently bubbling in the magical community. So what the hell is "Proper Samhain"? According to some people, Samhain should be celebrated on the day that falls exactly between the Fall Equinox and Winter Solistice--or when the Sun is in the fifteenth degree of Scorpio (the "astronomical Samhain" or "astrological Samhain")--November 6 or 7 this particular year (depending upon where you live).

And my response to this idea that everyone, other than these enlightened armchair occultists, are doing Samhain on the wrong day? Poppycock!!!

Honestly, my opinion is that the "Proper Samhain" theory was created by a bunch of people who decided that they have to be smarter than practicing Wiccans and pagans, especially the sainted Gerald Gardner, the founder of Wicca. The theory sounds good on paper, but really does not hold water when it comes to actual practice? No, it does not.

For one thing, the "solar-astronomical" Sabbaths, the Equinoxes and Solstices, are known as "Lesser Sabbaths." The "Greater Sabbaths" are all planting/harvesting/fertility holidays. Therefore, a proper astrological correct Samhain instantly becomes a Lesser Sabbath, a mere point on the journey of the sun though the zodiac--in other words, something other than solar position makes Samhain what it is--a Greater Sabbath.

Secondly, the theory ignores the non-universality of the observance of the Sabbaths. The holidays that the Sabbaths are based on were not practiced everywhere; and more importantly, when they were practiced, they were based on local agricultural conditions...or some local religious observance.

In other words, local conditions trump (override) the astrological theory. Your first harvest ritual corresponds to when your first harvest actually happens in your local neighborhood--not when the sun is in a particular degree of the zodiac. Likewise, your last harvest (aka Samhain) occurs when your local growing conditions cease to be suitable to leave the majority of the crop out in the fields (please note that there are some winter crops that can be harvested or planted despite the drop in temperatures). In fact, last harvest can vary from year to year--last year, my own last harvest occurred in late November--this year, it was mid-October. The only reason that modern-day Wicca gets away with fixed dates for the Sabbaths is that most of us are not farmers or gardeners anymore--but that still does not make the astrological version more valid than the farming/fertility version of the Sabbaths.

And in the case of Samhain (All Hallows Eve--Halloween), it occurs on a day that several cultures (including the much-hated Catholic culture) consider preceding a feast day celebrating the honored dead. This is another form of local condition overriding the astrological theory. Then again, that may be the real reason that certain armchair occultists want to move the celebration to a different day--in their minds, we can't share anything in common with the hated oppressors of the pagan religions...despite the fact that the Church lifted that particular feast day directly from the pagans themselves with us merely reclaiming it as our own in modern times.

So Happy Proper Astrological Samhain! to all the armchair occultists. And stay out of my garden!

Book review: A Modern Celt--Seeking the Ancestors (Mabh Savage)

A caution must be issued right up front about this book: this is not a book of lore or ritual/personal techniques. If that is what you are after, this book will not fit your needs. A Modern Celt--Seeking the Ancestors (Mabh Savage) is a "fire-side chat" book; it is a rather informal collection of the author's experiences, tales from her family, and accounts from her friends about experiences gained by coming into contact with the lore and deities of the Ancient Celtic people.

For those people who have experienced the fire-side chat mode, that time after a ritual or lesson when you are sitting around a bonfire (or in the case of lodge members--during the after-ritual dinner) talking to your teacher and fellow students and seekers, the style of this book will be familiar. It is a rather informal book, one that my professors in college and university would have imploded upon reading. It is a step above gossip, generally on the level of the stories that one tells when one's coven (study group or lodge) has became a familial unit of sorts.

This style may be strange to those who have been practicing and studying by themselves, or who have gotten involved in the "strict lodge" setting where students are forced to hang out only with others of their particular grade and degree of knowledge. Hint: the fire-side chat mode is the start of the oral traditions that one hears about.

This book is not heavy on knowledge or techniques. It is a retelling of personal stories. And it will be a comfort for those who have experienced similar events, and educational for those with open minds who have not. I think that the book is worthwhile reading, despite the lack of spoon-fed lore and techniques; but I imagine that there will be readers who take issue with the book because of the lack of information and detail in it (one cannot say that I did not try to warn them off).

Is the information that is given accurate? This is a hard question to answer, at least for me; I am not an expert in Celtic paganism. But I do have a benchmark to attempt to hazard a guess, and that is how the author treats the Celtic Tree Calendar. For those who do not know, the Celtic Tree Calendar was created almost completely out of thin air by Robert Graves during the "paganism has survived underground, and my wild theories is what the ancient pagans actually thought" mode of the pagan revival (the Golden Dawn of the 1880s and the Wiccan books of Gerald Gardner are other examples of that particular stage of the pagan revival). Basically, there is no evidence to indicate that the Ancient Celts used such a fixed calendar, not alone the one that Robert Graves expounded upon.

There are three modes of dealing with the Celtic Calendar: 1) insisting on the truth of it...mainly because one loves the idea that paganism survived underground clear up to the start of the pagan revival; 2) completely abandoning it...because only actual Celtic practices should be used; and 3) splitting the difference...acknowledging the fact that Graves made the Celtic Tree Calendar up, yet using the result because it serves a purpose.

Mabh Savage belongs to the splitting the difference camp. She acknowledges the fictional nature of the Celtic Tree Calendar, and then proceeds to gather some actual tree and plant lore from the Ancient Celts to illustrate that Graves was not pulling it completely out of thin air and that there might be a grain of usefulness in the Celtic Tree Calendar. As someone who belongs to a group that does much the same with the Celtic Tree Calendar, I like that approach (the group that I belong to uses the Celtic Tree Calendar because it needed a Celtic knowledge system that could be represented in diagram form...it is a lodge thing).

Overall, given the fact that book is meant to be, essentially a set of fire-side style stories about how modern Celts are interacting with the deities and practices of the Ancient Celts, I give it five out of five stars. (It would suffer a loss of at least one star if one decided to judge it based on lore or techniques--something that the book is not really about.)

[Disclosure: This review is based on a pre-publication version provided by the publisher.]

Witch trials and the survival of paganism

Troll Cat reminds me that it is my opinions that are going to get me burned at the stake.

[This post has been censored in the name of peace...provided that you can have peace and actually disagree with people.]

When I was younger, I believed in the myth that nine million witches and pagans were killed during the great European Witch Hunts. And that the esoteric tradition had been successfully hidden through the use of the oral tradition among covens and lodges.

Today, I do not believe this.

Instead, I believe that the Witch Hunts were primarily Christian on Christian violence; the targets were heretics and property owners who had lands and wealth that the Church and secular authorities wanted. In other words, the Witch Hunts were not about destorying a pagan religion--rather it was about the Church and secular authorities being greedy; the Witch Hunts were driven by economics and the need to control the Christian religion. And it extends past the Church and government, for there was a reward given to people who turned in witches; greed drove the accusations more than fear.

And the numbers killed were much lower than the nine million that is generally cited by those who still insist that they were really a hunting down of actual pagans.

Now, let's be honest: one death in the Witch Hunts was one too many. Among the victims were women, many of them widows, who just happened to have property that other people wanted. The Witch Hunts were wrong.

But the fact that the Witch Hunts happened is not proof that pagan and esoteric traditions managed to survive underground. It is merely proof that people back then were willing to use the Bible to commit acts that go against the love that Christianity claims to be about, much like there are people today who are willing to do the same.

I do believe that some of the customs of the pagan religion survived. But not in the oral tradition, and not in the Book of Shadows copied hand to hand. No, the surviving bits of the pagan religion consists of ideas and customs that were absorbed by Christianity. Many of a Saint is built from the gods and goddesses that the Christians overthrew. These ideas affected magic and alchemy. The ideas also made their way into the Witch Hunting Manuals--but considering that a Witch Trial was done by the Manual, with an ample dose of torture, no confession can be trusted as proof that pagans still existed.

And these ideas were written down...or at least, enourgh of them were, that when the nineteenth century thinkers started to react against Victorian England, they had something to work with. The bones of British Traditional Wicca, as well as the ideas that formed the Golden Dawn and several other lodge systems, can be found in English literature and grimoires.

Yes, I am a British Traditional Wiccan. The type of Wicca I practice comes from England, not Europe. If we waited for Europe to reclaim its pagan heritage, we would still be waiting. The revival of paganism is a British event, not European.

(For the record, the pagan survival in the Norse lands extended to 1000 CE...but we cannot touch that stuff because of the little mess that happened during the first half of the twentieth century.)

What changed my mind about the Witch Hunts and survival of the pagan religions? The evidence I have been exposed to. My mentor in college was a medievalist--I have read more than my fair share of medieval texts. And before I stepped into college, I hunted down information all on my own--the Witch Hunting Manuals are tedious to read.

BTW is a product of Britian; it is a brand new religion.

So why do so many people believe still in the survival of paganism through the oral tradition, and that the Witch Hunts were actually hunting witches? Simply because they are trying to prove that their religion is older than Christianity and that they are still in danger of being burned at the stake by people who believe otherwise. I understand why they must defend their version of history, for it is a psychological need; but the evidence that I have seen says that their version of occult history is just a myth.

(If you want to change my opinion, provide actual proof.)

QoD Our traditions are now owned by Christian and New Agers

Here is a quote taken from a blog post talking about why polytheism is vital to paganism:

Right now Goddess-worship, tarot, astrology, reiki, magic, ritual, meditation and all the things we practice are being reclaimed and invigorated. But not by us. By bland New Age philosophers and by Progressive Christians. In the larger picture, they own these things. They are the face of all our practices and theology. Ecological spirituality, shadow work, energetic healing, shamanic journeying and the power of intention are all things they own. For every small-town priestess teaching her handful of students about the power of intention there are millions watching Oprah express the same concepts and principles on television. They are the ones buying the bulk of the incense and tarot decks and crystals and attending workshops. They are the ones buying the books by Deepak Chopra on using Merlin as a guide to self-transformation.

They own it all. Everything. There is nothing you can name that they do not own. Even Voudou is practiced by Catholics using the names of saints instead of orishas. Even those things that have originated within our communities are now owned by them. The Divine Feminine is now a liberal Christian concept. Christian theology and atheism have taken over the Greek philosophers. They own it all.

QoD Is daily (clergical) practice neccessary?

Here is a taste of a post from the blog Aedicula Antinoi: A Small Shrine of Antinous that kicks around the idea that for many modern pagans that we do not need to engage in daily duties that would normally be the job of the full-time clergy of ancient times (please note that this idea may not actually apply to ceremonial magicians and apprentice witches, but I still encourage you to go read the rest of the post):

The notion in many sorts of paganism that everyone is “their own clergy” and thus has clergy status, and therefore must in a variety of ways perform as if they are clergy, is rather erroneous in my view. As much as certain teachers and practitioners would suggest all of the modern pagan/polytheist population have some sort of daily practice (which usually looks like “daily meditation” in most forms I’ve seen it), I can’t really support that necessity from a general viewpoint, either as a reconstructionist or as a general spiritual practitioner who has many strong deity devotions, including Antinous. What I do and what I am is not to be taken as “an example” of what all people who are devoted to Antinous should be doing, any more than my current unemployment or being without romantic relationships should be taken as “required” for anyone who is devoted to Antinous.

See what I did there? Taking any person’s style of life as “exemplary,” even in one area of their life like spiritual practice, is a very big mistake. Every relationship with every deity, hero, or other divine being requires individualized, particularized, and highly unique negotiation, offers and counter-offers, efforts and counter-efforts, and all sorts of reciprocity as well as contractuality coming into the picture on the part of the gods/heroes/divine beings and the humans who are devoted to them.

Mooning the Sun (Tarot Blog Hop)

BIORC Sun Card--copyright 2012 MDE (All Rights Reserved).

Hi everyone! Some of you are my regular readers--and some of you doing the Tarot Blog Hop (here is a link to the masterlist just in case, there are any breaks in the Hop). If you are coming in from the regular readership, then you are pobably coming here through the padded room at the Lunar Restroom for Retired Secret Chiefs (no, you say--what do you mean when you say that I am making stuff up?!). Those from the Tarot Blog Hop, have came here from Jordan Hoggard's Tarot in the Land of Mystereum blog (or from the masterlist if there is a break in the Hop).

Today's Tarot Blog Hop theme is Celebrate the Sunrise.

For me, a lot of my observances and celebrations of the sun and its cycles are colored by the fact that I am a Wiccan. This is something that extends to the other members of the Order and lodge that I belong to (though the correct label for them is pagan).

I tend to think of this blending as "mooning the sun." For a religion that focuses on the moon, Wicca pays a lot of attention to the sun. There are Wiccans who do the annual drumming up of the sun. Four of the eight big Wiccan holidays are directly related to the main turning points of the sun's cycle, the two Equinoxes and two Solistices.

By the way, three of these four are built right into the Golden Dawn system...all Golden Dawn Orders can claim to be involved in the ancient pagan mysteries if they still observe these three events in their annual ritual cycle.

On the other hand, one could argue that the Golden Dawn pays little attention to the moon...unless you count the number of members who are Wiccan and pagan and/or check the phase of the moon before doing any major magical work.

Life as we know it on this planet would not be as it is if it wasn't for the interplay of the sun and the moon. Our planet has been blessed to have a large moon and a solar orbit that places it in a comfortable (or as comfortable as you can get in this universe) zone that supports life.

The best illustration of the play between the sun and the moon comes from Ancient Egyptian mythology. The original calendar in Ancient Egypt was 360 days, which was divided up into ten day periods (the 36 decans). This calendar would rapidly grow out of sync with the actual seasons of the year. The mythology of Anciet Egypt actually records an attempt to correct the calendar and explain "mytholically" what was happening.

According to the myth, the Earth God Geb made love to his sister, the Sky Goddess Nut. This act upset Nut's father so much that he forbid her to give birth during the days of the normal calendar. Nut. being pregnant with quintuplets, called upon Thoth to aid her. Thoth goes to the moon and plays dice with the moon; in this manner, Thoth wins five extra days to allow for the birth of Nut's children (Osiris, Horus the Elder, Set, Isis and Nephthys). By this act, Thoth starts to become a moon God.

The interesting thing about this myth, besides the interplay of the solar and lunar calendars, is the fact that the moon, over the course of billions of years, have changed the length of the day on earth, therefore changing the number of days in a earth year. Therefore the myth mirrors a scientific truth.

I was reminded of this story when I was creating the version of the Sun card that illustrates this post. Originally, I meant for there to be two cats sitting on the wall (because I have a problem with Sun cards with creepy children in them)--but by the time I was done, they had morphed into monkeys or baboons, a symbol of Thoth. The baboons of Thoth are said to celebrate the sunrise every morning by giving out loud cries. One can say that the Ancient Egyptians celebrated the sunrise by having monkeys moon the sun.

If you are proceeding with the Blog Hop, your next stop will be The Hermit's Lamp (Andrew McGregor).

I am a pagan and not a horse

Fuck you---I am Cat---I will play with anyone I want to.

Some days, you just have to say that "A white horse is not a horse."

And this is proving to be one of those months...I have yet to see a day on the blogosphere where it does not apply.

For those of you who are tuning in late, there is an campaign going on another blog that is based on the bear trap of "If you agree with anything that I say, then you have to agree that my entire world view is true." It is one of the reasons that I dislike the blogger in question; they use this bear trap all the time.

(Over the years, my dislike of this person has grown based purely on their public actions. It is probably just a personal problem.)

It must be nice to live in a black and white universe where there are only heroes and villians, the good guys and the crooks. It must be even nicer to be able to tell the difference between the two camps. Myself, I live in a shaded universe without no clear cut definitions of right and wrong, no clear cut difference between perfect and imperfect.

The most amusing part is that the line between good and evil they seem to be using is whether you are pagan or not. If you belong to a society that was Christian-only any time in its entire history, then you are evil. Gee, one should burn their Rosicrucian union card, shouldn't they?

This is coming from a convert to paganism (sometime after 1995). I think that they might be in their anti-Christian phase. I expect them to now run around cleaning up all evidence that they are a convert to paganism---they periodically scrub their past history to fit their current set of arguments. For instance, they would rather scrub the fact that they were members of certain groups rather than say, "Gee, that was a really bad decision in hindsight."

Now, I have been a life-long pagan. In fact, I have been a life-long Wiccan.

Maybe I should give some context here. My father was a Catholic, and my mom was something else (one of those Christian groups that really frowns on the Catholic Church). Based on the research I have done, my family on my father's side at some point converted to the Catholic Church. It seems that side of the family might have originally been Jewish.

Given the difference in opinion about religion between my parents, it was decided that I would be raised without a religion. So the only exposure to Christianity I recieved during childhood was a few children story books focused mainly on the Old Testament (or maybe it is because I only read the Old Testament stories).

But I was exposed to a religion as a kid---my dear aunt was a Wiccan of the Gardnerian stripe. It didn't help that my mom believed in reincarnation and astrology. So when I say that I have been a life-long Wiccan, I am serious.

I came out of the broom closet in 1978 when I was thirteen. The timing of this decision was a very bad idea in hindsight. As a result of coming of the broom closet, a strong attempt was made to "save my soul."

It was the attempt to save my soul and the attitudes of certain Christians that caused me to go through a rather long period where I was anti-Christian. Either that or I spent an extended time period being a teenager.

My anti-Christian period is matter of public record. If one is curious about how bad my anti-Christian bias got, feel free to read the last article contained in Four Cornerstones (available for free on Smashwords).

I was still in my ant-Christian phase when I first encountered Golden Dawn. And I was still allowed into the Order. I somehow convinced them, despite my charming personality, to invite me into Inner Order. Of course, in all fairness, this was a branch of the tradition that gave an earlier AO claimed-descent group the bird.

So I am one of those Golden Dawn members that was told "If you are not a Christian, you have to be willing to study Christian symbolism." And I said Ok.

Later on, I was briefly a member of the Thelemic Golden Dawn, a fact that I have not hidden either. And this was despite the fact that I do not completely believe in the Book of the Law. This may or may not make me a Thelemic. (I don't consider myself a Thelemic, but there are a couple of Thelemics who do---it is one of the reasons my lodge does not have an anti-Thelema rule in Outer Order. Inner Order does, but it is a "You have to make a choice between Orders rule"---it would apply equally to someone who had a membership in the HOGD/AO or the MOAA as it does to the AA and OTO.)

Of course, I am hoping that this is just an anti-Christian phase that I am seeing. I fear that it is just another attempt to get the rest of us to acknowledge that the person in question is the greatest Golden Dawn magician and leader of all time. (Ok, I know that statement is wrong, but it is how I tend to read most of his tactics---it is the only end goal that makes sense of half of his statements.)

So I am in a position where I am reading his current line of arguments and thinking to myself:

"Gee, I was Golden Dawn before someone took out their trademark. And honestly, the SRIA has never said a single word to me about what I am currently doing. In fact, I am not even sure that the SRIA is aware of me...outside of one individual who likes funny cat pictures. And honestly, if the pagans are allowed to study their esoteric mysteries in private and restrict their membership to fellow and lady believers, shouldn't the Christians be allowed to study their own mysteries in private also? As for the threat of a group gaining full control over Golden Dawn, I am more worried that a dog lover may succeed."

Personally, I am more worried about certain politicians and their "Christians are being attacked" nonsense. That line of thought could make it unpleasant for all of us.

And now some content for the "A white horse is not a horse" comment. I am studying Chinese Philsophy and Religion at the moment. The Logician School (Ming-Chia or Ming-Pien) thought that there needed to be an one on one correspondence between words and reality. What the word "white" describes has nothing to do with horses; and the word "horse" is not describing a color---and if it sounds stupid, well, there is a reason why this school of Chinese philosophy disappeared after the Flowering of a Thousand Schools period.

I used it because it was fresh in my mind, and it is like saying that "A Golden Dawner in the SRIA is not a Golden Dawner." Of course, the fact that I believe this will be used as proof that I am not a member of a true Golden Dawn Order. And so it goes.

Remember Elvis loves you.

I am pagan and wiccan and in Golden Dawn

It was with some amusement yesterday that I read that there is only one Golden Dawn Order with an openly pagan leader. Gee, I can name a few others...except that a comment by me is currently the kiss of death. Heck, for two seconds there, me a pagan and a Wiccan was a Golden Dawn leader...just long enourgh to burn my union card for saying something that I consider to be the truth.

So why are the Wiccans and pagans not more visible in Golden Dawn?

Simply, because a member's religion is no one else's business. Those of us who known as pagans and Wiccans fall into two categories---either we are open about our religion with everyone despite society's attempt to shut us up and accidentally became visible in Golden Dawn, or we are pagan and Wiccan leaders who just happen to study and practice Golden Dawn techniques.

In my case, I was open about my religion before encountering Golden Dawn, and borrowed some stuff that was not bolted down.

In the case of the supposed "only pagan GD leader" they have claimed the right to be a pagan leader by virtue of super-secret lore placed in their possession. Of course, given the fact that the pagans and Wiccans are generally anti-leadership, claiming to be a pagan leader almost makes you NOT a leader in the first place.

So both Golden Dawn styles have pagans among their leaders; it is more of a question of if one is willing to sit in the same lodge with them.

Printing out a large Death card

...and we will update this horrific story of the 2012 nuclear meltdown as soon as we have more information. We now return you to your regularly scheduled program, "Who the heck let Morgan into the Golden Dawn?!"

How to use Adobe Reader to print out a really big Tarot card.

One of the things I have been doing lately when I am just too fried from doing too much research to do any actual homework or Russian Bride fiction (damn you History Senior Seminar) is working on the script (really I plan on having a script...that will not be used) and the props for the late June Open Full Moon Ritual (Hearthstone Community Church).

One of the props that I decided that I needed was a really big version of the Death card. And by big, I mean poster board size. At first, I thought I was going to have to use the old grid method or perhaps draw one completely freehand. Then I stumbled across a neat trick using Adobe Reader X.

By clicking on the "poster" button in the print menu, and adjusting the tile scale, you can print out enlarged sections of a picture which can then be glued to a poster board. Therefore, with just a little glue and some help from the Secret Chief in charge, I will have a honking big Tarot card to make the local Wiccans and pagans think that I am completely out of my mind.

Cool, isn't it?



The Secret Chief in charge believes that I need to adjust the sections of the card.



Proof that I also own a copy of Pat Zalweski's Magical Tarot of the Goklen Dawn.



Growing abyss between schools of thought

One of the trends that I noticed over the past year is the growing abyss between various schools of thought. In US politics, the gap has grown so wide that I foresee nothing but badness occuring in the upcoming Presidental election (it is the rich and the poor brainwashed by the rich vs. the poor). In paganism, there is growing gap between those building on the past and those building on the concept that it is a newly invented religion. In Wicca, the gap between the secret coven members and the public anything goes witchcraft continues to widen.

What all these situations have in common is that the differences of opinion, perhaps the very bedrock of ideas that the schools of thought are built upon,are creating differences in the language being used so wide that clear communication is being blocked. This communication gap may or may not being
 intentional.

This type of situation is also occuring in Golden Dawn. For years, we have suffered from the difference between the self-initiates and the classically trained and initiated Temple (lodge) members. Golden Dawn has always lost a certain number of people to the fact that active Golden Dawn lodges are hard to find. The couple of work-arounds that has been developed to address the problem are highly questioned in a few quarters.

And for several years, we have seen the growing abyss between Robert Zink and certain members of his Order. This spring, it finally broke the EOGD into two camps; and earlier this month, it became three camps. It looked like a repeat of the Revolt of the Adepts for awhile there.

Then we have the latest and greatest difference of opinion to develop in the Golden Dawn community. There has been a growing abyss growing between the European school of Golden Dawn and those schools that originated elsewhere in the world.

The primary issue is whether or not to accept the existence of an European Third Order---acceptance of such implies that you are willing to follow their public Head and spokesperson, are willing to increase your level of secrecy to the point where all published material are no longer considered valid (including the Mathers material) and all the rituals and lessons have been rewritten to re-install absolute secrecy, and are willing to be expelled if one of your fellow lodge members breaks their secrecy oath. Acceptance also implies that all modern developments of the Golden Dawn system (aka any that developed after the Cipher Manuscript) will someday be abandoned.

Ok, maybe it is not that severe...but given the fact that no one (outside of a couple of selected spokepeople) are able to talk about what is going on in that camp---well, one can only imagine what is really going on.

What one does not need to imagine is the lack of communication between the two schools. For the person who does not keep track of such things, here is the scorecard: The European school insists that all modern developments (before 1888) of Golden Dawn are wrong (including Mathers) and that Golden Dawn needs to be restructured according to the precepts of the original parent organization---all statements of the modern school are labeled flame attacks. The modern school insists that the original parent organization does not exist and has never existed, and that it is a shell game to conceal who is really the Head of the European school---furthermore, the modern school is slightly upset that all new developments must generally be abandoned to return the system to its 17th century glory.

Ok, maybe it is not that severe...but both sides refuse to communicate with the other party until they agree to play by their rules.

Of course, this scorecard summary ignores those of us who believe that the Golden Dawn developed from an earlier system, but that contact with Third Order was broken for so long that the modern Golden Dawn does not have to answer to the European Third Order---in other words, we have been separate systems for a long time and no longer have much in common. To reunite the two schools means destorying one of them---someone has to lose in order for there to be a reunification.

Now, the big question is do I foresee this abyss of difference, and the lack of communication between the schools, going away any time soon? No. In fact, at the point of time, I foresee the pagans, the Wiccans (and witches), and the American political system healing their differences long before the European and global Golden Dawn communities heal theirs.

Ignorance or meddling

Over the last couple of days, I have noticed an upswing in amount of attention paid to the problem with groups being ignorant of the basics. Now, there is always a certain amount of concern surrounding this issue---it is one of those issues that is always present---the waxing and waning of attention paid to it is cyclic.

There are three things related to this I would like to address.

Concerning the Golden Dawn Knowledge Lectures: Someone pointed out that the Golden Dawn Knowledge Lectures seemed to be rather sparse. They are. The commentor felt that they should be more fully explained and just a list to memorize. They are right.

One of the problems with the Knowledge Lectures as we have them is that they are merely the list of what you need to know to pass the most basic test for advancement. What is missing is the oral (or written) lectures that the lodge member should be exposed to. It is things like this that contribute to people having a high Grade and having no idea what they are talking about.

Concerning how much concern we should have when we realize a group is being ran by someone ignorant: One of my friends on Facebook pointed out that many Wiccan and pagan circles are being ran by people ignorant of the basics---a problem that never *wink* occurs in Golden Dawn *chokes a little* Orders. A group being ran by someone ignorant of the basics does not alarm me as much as the unwillingness to admit ignorance.

I know a lot of people do not trust me because I use the following sentences: "This is my answer based on my current knowledge and understanding" and "I reserve the right to change my mind, and the answer I am giving, based on further thought and experience." The people who associate distrust with these sentences are looking for the ONE and ONLY CORRECT ANSWER---something that I have serious doubts actually exist.

I realize that our myths state that only Masters should be in charge and apprentices should be just students, but the truth is that Masters are still just students with added responsibilities.

Concerning the rewriting of Golden Dawn rituals: Yes, I am guilty of rewriting sections of the Golden Dawn rituals. I consider all the versions that we have to be just "working drafts." It is one of reasons that I shrug my shoulders whenever someone publishes a version of the rituals--I figure that any set of rituals that have been used for more than a decade is probably in need of a tune-up.

For instance, I added an unauthorized "third part" to the Zelator ritual to address the fact that the a section of the Golden Dawn community was now starting the study of geomancy in Zelator. And what I learned was that this third section had more oomph and flow than the official parts of the ritual did. This in turn is going to lead to a reworking of the rest of the Zelator ritual.

This will lead people to pointing out that I am meddling in things that I do not fully understand---that only an Adept Extemptus...or a Magister Templi...or an Ipsissimus has the knowledge and authority to change the scripts of the rituals. My answer to this is that I don't care that I am not of the proper Grade according to your understanding of the system...and that I am not even sure that we are working in the same system to begin with. I belong to a system that changes with the time and the experience of those involved in it---what was true a hundred years ago, two hundred years ago, etc. is not exactly suitable for the modern student who is living in a different time and place than our ancestors did. If you think that the dawn of consciousness was the Golden Age, you need to move back into the caves with the bears.

QoD Ronald Hutton

Actually, this should be quotes of the day, but it would just be confusing to have a label like that. Yes, I am guilty of reading the latest piece by Ronald Hutton, Writing the History of Witchcraft: A Personal View, that was just published in the latest issue of The Pomegrante. Three months ago, I wouldn't have been bothered to read this, being more of the "What shiny pieces does your tradition have that are not bolted down properly" type of magical worker than the type of pagan/Wiccan that is concerned about what academic historians say about my religion and other interests. Heck, three months ago, I didn't even know who Hutton was. But hey, everyone else is going to be talking about this in the morning, so I better read the article.

For those who just want my conclusion on whether Ronald Hutton should be trusted, just skip to the end, for I discovered that I was biased and not in the way that I am supposed to be as a Golden Dawn authority. I am going to have to turn in my union card---the (human) Third Order is so going to expel me from the tradition for this bias--the real Secret Chiefs (the cats) will agree, just because they are tired of members showing up at the house and disturbing their naps.

Pages numbers are the same as the journal---remember I use MLA style (###) on my blog because footnoting is such a pain to do on blogger.

"[The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Pagan Witchcraft] was not a general history of Paganism, ancient or modern, in Britain or anywhere else. It did not treat of the history of witchcraft outside Britain, except in as much as that affected British developments. It was certainly not intended to attack the foundational claims of Wicca, because in Britain confidence in those claims had already collapsed" (240).

By the time, I joined the Wiccan community in the early 1980s, the foundational story/myth was pretty much ignored, at least in the circles that I traveled in. Occasionally, I still run into someone that believes that the witch-hunts actually was being conducted to purge the remains of a pagan religion---I tend to humor them. Also on occasion, I run into someone that claims to be fam-trad---I really humor them---they tend to be teenagers! Of course, this is America; everyone in America is delusional, more or less. As for the European community, may I remind you that I am not in Europe and that American Wicca comes from Britian, or at least the branch I belong to does. If things are different in Europe, fine and well, but my membership is American---British descent.

"By characterizing witchcraft as a good Pagan religion, persecuted by Christianity, it made nonsense of the fact that ancient European Pagans had tried and executed people, sometimes on a huge scale, for the same crimes (esstentially, attempting to harm others by magical means) as those alleged against early modern witches, only lacking the element of Satanism" (241).

Yeah, that was a bad PR move.

"Triumph was therefore written not to demolish a belief system but to fill a vacuum created by the collapse of one. Both in professional terms and those of my standing among Pagans, it would have been far better for me had I been able to rescue the old orthodoxy instead. To prove the existence of an early modern Pagan witch religion, after all, would have been a sensational coup among historians, while to prove its endurance to the present day would have endeared me to all modern Pagan witches. I simply found the task impossible, and indeed it became more so as my research for the book went on" (241).

I feel like taking him at his word about the purpose of his book. And as a fellow scholar (humor me), I so understand the Holy Grail of academic research---every scholar wishes to pull off a coup.

"[Modern Paganism's] goddess and god were not the deities of a few cranks, drawing on long-distant ancient images, but deity-forms who had manifested themselves to some of the greatest of all British poest, novelists, and scholars. Its beliefs and rites reflected some of the deepest needs of the modern British soul, and it was not a phemomenon marginal to society in general but drew on impulses which were central to it" (241).

Ok, I will admit to being stupid. I see nothing wrong with this statement. Someone please explain why I am supposed to be upset with this man and his work.

"[My] work re-evaluated generally beloved writers such as John Keats, Percy Shelley, Robert Browning, Algernon Swinburne, Charlotte Bronte, Rider Haggard, Kenneth Grahame, and D. H. Lawrence, among many others, and entitled Pagans today legitimately to claim them as forebears" (242).

The Literature major, that is me, just gave this girlish rock star sighting scream. Hutton is giving my goal as a History/Literature double major a boost, some evidence to argue with the heads of my programs that my eventual academic goal is a real academic goal. Again, I really need someone to explain to me why I am supposed to hate this man.

On that note, I am going to hit "publish post" and leave it to those people who are smarter than I am and less invested in this issue to decide if the rest of us should listen to the man. I am the wrong person to do so; after all, I am the man (without knowing of Hutton) who walked into college planning on tracing symbols that informed modern occult thought though literary references from ancient times to the present. My planned focus as a scholar says that I should be defending the man's research. Yes, I will admit that I am biased in this case.

Cue the people who are smarter and less invested than I am to weigh if Ronald Hutton needs to be burned for his heresy.

International Pagan Coming Out Day

I did not realize that today was International Pagan Coming Out Day. That makes me a bad pagan blogger, right?

I came out of the broom closet back in junior high...in front of my mom...and she promptly put me back into the broom closet. Not that anyone in the town that we were living in (a small town) believed for a second that I was a good Christian like my mom made me pretend to be.

Spending high school in the broom closet made me militant when I came out the second time. For my mom's sake, I did chose to go by my pen-name for many years in the wiccan and pagan community---without allowing my pen-name to be connected with my real name. But that is about the only thing I did to make anyone comfortable.

I have mellowed out over the years. I am not sure when it happened. It might be due to my wife's influence. I am less in one's face about it nowadays. The level of my bluntness tends to be my standard joke in the religous study classes (which are actually literature classes) that I am the obligatory tree hugging pagan that all university classes are required to have. A joke I also use in Golden Dawn circles.

Happy International Pagan Coming Out Day!

Griffin is a pagan?! (Busy Golden Dawn News Weekend Pt 1)

It has been a busy couple of Golden Dawn news days. And quite honestly, no one in their right mind probably wants to start the ball rolling on commenting about the things that have been going on.

Well, no one ever said that I was in my right mind, did they?

The first one is that David Griffin announced that he is an initiated member of Stergheria del Bosco Sacro of Benevento, a branch of Stregheria (Italian paganism) that claims to have intact the Inner Alchemy secret of the Great Rite (a form of sex magic).

I presume that this is the big announcement that he hinted about a few weeks ago.

And the only thing I have to say other than the obvious (I am a non-believer in unbroken traditions) is: David Griffin is a pagan?!

Ok, I did not see that one coming. In fact, when asked what religion Griffin was (such things do come up in conversation), I have always said that I presumed that he was Christian. Well, I called that one wrong, didn't I?

The announcement did make better sense of some of his recent actions. For instance, when he waded into the whole historical argument about whether Wicca was a recent invention or an actual survival from the past, the best explanation I could come up for his interest was that if Wicca was a survival, then his claims that his Order (Hermetic Golden Dawn/A&O) was blessed with information intact from ancient Egypt and Babylonia would be looked upon more favorably. Again, I called it wrong, didn't I? I will admit that Griffin kept his beliefs well in the broom closet.

I tend to be very loud about my religion: partially because most Golden Dawn groups are so Christian, and partially because I am not smart enourgh to keep my mouth shut. I also practice the "buffet style" of paganism---if it is a tasty bit of lore or ritual, I grab it. I am definitely not the same type of pagan as Griffin, and therefore I will definitely not benefit from his efforts to make paganism a cultural force. Well, at least I know my place in the world, don't I?

Pagan Meme Survey

Over on Adventures in Witchery, Veles posted his response to one of those pagan surveys that we get asked to full out in the forums when we join. I tend not to fill them out. Mainly, because like Veles, I find some of the questions to be sub-par (ok, idiotic). Fortunately, I have not ran into the Golden Dawn/ceremonial magic version (though I suspect that there is one out there someplace).

So here are my responses to the same pagan survey...I might not be a nice person.

Basics

Do you have a magical/Pagan name? No, what I have is a pen name and a motto. The second motto I took in Golden Dawn was Morgana Draconis, and I used a variation of it for my pen name. Over my magical career, I have adopted a dozon mottos (each new Order requires a new motto, go figure), but I have never taken on a magical name...unless Smart-A** counts.

What does it mean? It means that if I am going to be called an evil person, then I am going to be the best evil person that I can be.

How did you find Paganism? I think that it found me.

How long have you been practicing? I have been a Witch since 1979, and a card-carrying member of Golden Dawn since 1992.

Solitary or group practitioner? What day of the week is it? And what am I working on?

What is your path? The Viking path of you didn't bolt down your Egyptian gods and goddesses, an equal opportunity path of theft and misappropriation disguised as mercantilism and Victorian pragmatism.

Are you out of the broom closet? Yes, since 1979. It made my mother sad.

Deity

Who is your patron God? What day of the week is it? What am I working on?

Who is your patron Goddess? Bast, and whoever else decides to show up today.

What Gods do you worship? What day of the week is it? What am I working on?

Do you fear darkly aspected Gods/Goddesses? Or do you respect them? Hail Sekmet! Hail Odin! Hail Loki! Hail the Baron! My gods and goddesses eat fluff bunnies and new agers for breakfast.

Do you worship the Christian God? Isn't he the jealous one? Or is he the Gnostic?

Do you ever worship animals? Of course, I am owned by cats.

Or plants? Chocolate, cafferine, sugar beets, sugar cane, and corn.

Nature

Do you regularly commune in nature? Does talking to a friend while working in my herb garden count?

Ever walked barefoot in the woods? No. Isn't that dangerous?

Taken a camping trip just to talk to nature? Camping?! You are kidding, right?! Camping is for drinking and shooting.

Describe the moment that you felt closest to Mother Earth? I think that would be the time I fell off a roof.

Do you have a familiar? No. I am owned by cats, and pets are forbidden by them.

Have you ever called upon the power of an animal in ritual? Kitty, I am trying to mediate here---quit kneading my lap.

Or a plant? There is not enourgh mugwort in the incense burner if you can see the person on the other side of the room.

Do you hug trees? Only if I am about to vomit.

Give them gifts? Water and compost. And thanks when I harvest them.

What is your favorite flower to work with? Marigolds for honoring the dead.

What is your favorite tree to work with? Plum trees makes great wands.

Wheel of the Year

What is your favorite holiday? Halloween.

What is your least favorite holiday? How can you dislike holidays?

Have you ever held a ritual on a holiday? Yes.

Have you ever taken a day off to celebrate a Pagan holiday? No, but I have taken days off to recover from them.

Do you celebrate Yule on December 21st rather than the 25th? I celebrate both.

Have you ever felt the veil thin? Which one? Yes on many of them.

Ever danced the Maypole? Yes. Passerbys looked at us strangely.

Know what the Maypole symbolizes? *giggle*

How do you usually celebrate the Pagan holidays? With laughter.

Divination

Do you use the Tarot? Tarot is not just for divination anymore.

Do you use runes? Runes are not just for divination anymore.

Do you use a pendulum? Only when my Advanced Adept Advisor insists that I use it.

Do you use dowsing rods? You mean that coat hanger I cut up?

Do you use astrology? Astrology is not just for divination anymore.

Any other form of divination? Is your form of divination bolted down?

Spells

What was the first spell that you did? Invisible friend.

What was the latest? Ask me again in ten minutes.

Ever done a love spell? Yes. Though it was more of a "Find someone willing to put up with my insanity" spell.

A job spell? In this economy? You are kidding, right? And does using a "Find new employee" spell count as a job spell?

A healing spell? I am not sure if I would call it a spell.

What was the most powerful spell you have ever performed? This is a very badly worded question. Are we measuring this by EKP? Or results? Or the number of people annoyed?

What deities do you usually call on? What day of the week is it? What am I working on?

Cryptozoology

Do you believe in Vampires? What type? And do CEOs count?

Werewolves? Maybe.

Shapeshifters? Define shapeshifting.

Elves? Cookies!!!!

Fairies? Yes.

Dragons? What nationality?

Nymphs? I once dated a nymph.

Sprites? Ain't they fairies?

Mermaids? Am I going on an ocean journey?

Satyrs? Ain't they fairies also?

Ever "seen" any of the above? Why would I want to admit that I have seen things without the liberal use of drugs?

Ever talked to any of the above? Only when they keep hiding my stuff, tangling my hair, and untying my shoes.

Ever used any of the above in magic? I now have a rule about inviting them into my workspace.

Do you have one of them as a personal guardian? Do I look like a trusting soul?

Random

Do you see a rabbit, man or woman in the moon? Only the aliens that crashlanded on it.

Own a cat? No. Several cats own me.

When you meditate, what does your happy place look like? What day is it? What am I working on?

Do you work with Charkas? What day is it? What am I working on?

Do you believe in past lives? Yes.

If so, describe a few briefly. Nameless scribe, ancient Egypt. Been in several wars. Low profile stuff.

Do you believe in soul mates? Those would be the "lifetime sentence" people, right?

Do you have a spirit guide? What day is it? What am I working on?

Is it always love and light? What day is it? What am I working on?

Pagan prayer for the busy season

Ok, this is a lift from the Colorado Pagan Yahoo Forum; it was posted by Teresa n'ha-Pagani.

White Lady and her Consort, Help us remember that the jerk who cut us off in traffic last night is a single mother who worked nine hours that day and is rushing home to cook dinner, help with homework, do the laundry and spend a few precious moments with her children.

Help us to remember that the pierced, tattooed, disinterested young man who can't make change correctly is a worried 19-year-old college student, balancing his apprehension over final exams with his fear of not getting his student loans for next semester.

Remind us, Lady and Lord, that the scary looking bum, begging for money in the same spot every day is a slave to addictions that we can only imagine in our worst nightmares.

Help us to remember that the old couple walking annoyingly slow through the store aisles and blocking our shopping progress are savoring this moment, knowing that, based on the biopsy report she got back last week, this will be the last year that they go shopping together.

White Lady and her Consort, remind us each day that, of all the gifts you give us, the greatest gift is love. It is not enough to share that love with those we hold dear. Open our hearts not to just those who are close to us, but to all humanity. Let us be slow to judge and quick to forgive, show patience, empathy and love.

So Mote It Be!

Children welcome

Tonight's Open Full Moon ritual is going to be done by Amy Harper (Nyteshade); it is going to be the annual Wiccaning that she does every year. Both her and Alia believe that we should introduce our children to our spiritual beliefs, so that they are aware of the option.

In many ways, I believe that Golden Dawn should also do this. The Freemasons have a couple of youth organizations; there are plenty of books for wiccans and pagans. But Golden Dawn has nothing, or at least nothing that I am aware of.

Though I would not like to step forward and deal with it myself; imagine the mud that would be sling over that concept. But if we don't do it, who will tell them that this path exists?