Holidays
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Summer’s End—The Sabbath of Work
There were three Menne came out of the West Their fortunes for to trye And these three Menne made a solemn vow John Barleycorne must die. Welcome to the end of summer and the beginning of autumn! …though it may not feel to be so where you live. Where I am it is HOT and going to be hotter for the next two months…but I can see in the coloring of early leaves and the hard blue of the sky that the Wheel is turning, that Autumn is coming on. This holiday, titled Lammas by the Catholic Church and Lughnasadh by the Irish, Scottish and Manx people, has historically celebrated…
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In Summer Heat
Today was very warm: 94 degrees F. That’s not hot for the tropics, or the North American Southwestern desert. Not hot for many places, I acknowledge. It gets a lot hotter here: over 110, now and then. But it was warm, and the house felt stuffy and hot when I got home. It’s deep summer. Berries are ripe and gardens are producing and grain has “growne a long, long beard, and so become a Manne”. Peaches and apricots and cherries are glorious, and days are still long, though they are shortening. Summer’s End approaches. Now, I’ve wrestled with this Sabbath. It seems as though there is so much going on…
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A Solar Reflection
It’s the day after Midsummer—at least, here in the Northern Hemisphere—and it’s hot and sunny, as one would expect. Meanwhile, the chaos weather of global climate change goes on: Banff had 25 cm of snow last night. I had a quiet Midsummer: set out my Sun Broom to soak up the sun and wove some additional lengths of wild rye into it; contemplated my Focus for awhile. The day became very hot and we mostly lay about under a fan with our clothes off. These are the longest days of the year, and those many hours of daylight bring a sense of possibility with them: so much time to do…
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Midsummer
Historically, Midsummer—also known as the summer solstice, or the Longest Day, coming up this year on June 21—was a time of enjoyment. Crops had been planted, but they weren’t bearing yet, so there was little to do but celebrate the long days and have a good time. Garden vegetables were beginning to produce and lambs and new goats were mature enough to cull, so there were food and drink, and time to enjoy one another’s company, create culture, and live at ease. Today, sadly, most people aren’t even aware that the summer solstice is upon them. It passes as just another day, despite the fact that we make such a…
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Walpurgisnacht and the Veil of Memory
In Northern European folklore from Ireland to the Czech Republic, the 30th of April is “May Eve”, which the Germans named for the Catholic St. Walpurga as Walpurgisnacht and believed to be a time when witches and evil spirits were abroad. It is believed—like Hallows in October—to be a time when the “veil” between the world and “the spirit world” is thin and passage between them in both directions is possible: a time when, just before the joy and lightness of May Day, there is exposure to dark dealings and presences. Huge bonfires are burned on Walpurgisnacht, serving—as fires have since before modern humans even existed—to keep the Scary Monsters…
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May Celebrations That Aren’t About Sex
Hooray, hooray, the first of May Outdoor fucking begins today! —old saw So, Atheopaganism is a pleasure-positive path. That’s Atheopagan Principle #10: so long as others and the Sacred Earth are respected, we believe that joy and fun and feeling good are our birthrights as humans. And that includes sex. Not for us, the furtive shame around sexuality that characterizes our Abrahamic brethren and sistren! We seek to be healthy in our boundaries, communications and behaviors, and happy in our enjoyment of our appetites. Sexuality—the ritual by which each of us is created—is Sacred, and it is a Good Thing. And. And that’s great,…
