Winter Solstice Greetings

 

 Happy Winter Solstice, everyone!

Halloween Sabbat

Happy Halloween, everyone! This is also called Samhain, and on the Pagan calendar, it is the end of the year. This is the third harvest, at which time,our ancestors' tradition held that all agricultural harvesting should be complete. Some Pagan traditions celebrate this day on October 31; others celebrate it on the first full moon of Scorpio. This day is set aside as a day to honor deceased Ancestors. It is a bit like Memorial Day, and gifts of flowers, whiskey, chocolate, food, and tobacco were often left at graves, as gifts for the Dead.  Gourds and turnips were carved into scary candle holders called "jack-o-lanterns" to scare away any malevolent spirits, and the custom of dressing up in costumes, as fairies or spirits, was seen as a means of protection, as well.

Halloween is also reminiscent of the Greek legend of Hades and his capture of Persephone, the daughter of Demeter, Goddess of agriculture, plants, and harvest. When Persephone disappeared, Demeter let the earth become barren. When Zeus intervened, and determined that Persephone should be in the Underworld with her new consort for six months, then with Demeter for six months, the seasons as we know them began, so the story goes. This is how Persephone became Queen of the Dead, and when she rushes out of the Underworld in the Spring, life begins anew.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Mabon Blessings

 

Today is the Autumnal Equinox, known in Pagan circles as Mabon. It is referenced as the "second harvest", Lammas being the first, and Samhain, or Halloween, being the third and final. As an equinox, it is a solar holiday, while Lammas is lunar. This makes it a Sabbat, which, to those who observe the Sabbats, means that rituals are practiced that are all about balance, personal balance, collective balance, and global balance. It is what we all work toward.

Mabon is the Thanksgiving of our European ancestors. Rather than focusing on trade, which was done at carnival, we spend time with family. After the holiday, this is still a very busy time of year. Everything must be harvested by the third harvest. 

Have a wonderful Mabon, all. Blessed Be!

Summer Solstice 2015

Happy Summer Solstice. Today is not only Fathers Day, but also the longest day of the year. Because of the earth's axial tilt, which gives us our seasons, the sun shines directly on the northern hemisphere, and it is summer above the Equator. This day is also a Pagan Sabbat, the time of the mystical marriage between the Holly King, who rules from now until Winter Solstice, and Mother Earth. This holy day is not only about the upcoming harvests, it is about balance. Blessed Be!

In Case You Missed Church This Sunday

Have a wonderful Mabon, everyone, Blessed Be!

Summer Solstice Greetings!

Happy Summer Solstice! 

Not A Day

 

Happy Summer Solstice