Hi all! We’ve been getting tons of spam posted to the CGM blog. I have them on moderation, so it shouldn’t affect any readers. However, I did go through and delete a whole bunch of registered users who appear to be spammers. If I deleted you and you’re a real person following this blog, please leave a comment on this post and I’ll re-add you.
Thank you, and I apologize for any inconvenience.
The Chantry of the Green Mountain has both a FaceBook page and a Twitter account! Come and join us in those new mediums.
Hello all! It’s quickly coming up to Yule and I thought I’d check in and see how everyone was doing. Did you have a good Thanksgiving? Are you getting excited for the Winter Solstice? I know I am.
I have our Solstice tree up and decorated. I love how it glows when we turn the rest of the lights off and head to bed. It makes me think of the stars that twinkle in the Winter sky and the Sun that is getting weaker and weaker before it begins its return starting on the Solstice. Originally a Germanic tradition, the tree would have fruits, nuts and candles on the tree. Now we tend to have electric lights (much safer than candles 
) and store-made ornaments. However you decorate it, it’s a wonderful way to bring some seasonal joy into your home.
On the CGM calendar coming up we have the December Meetup on Dec 11th, Full Moon Tour at the Wolf Sanctuary of PA on Dec 18th (also Lesley’s B-day!). We have TWO Yule events, both on Dec 19th. We’re having our first ever kids’ Yule event! It will be from 1 - 3 and we’ll be making suet birdseed ornaments, followed by an interactive ritual. Then we have our usual Yule ritual at 5 pm. There will be NO Wicca Workshop or Wicca 101 class on the 25th as the Owl Nest will be closed. I hope we’ll see you out at one or more of these events!
Many blessings to all during this holiday season. I hope you’re warm, well-fed, healthy and happy this Solstice!
For more information on the Pagan origins of the Solstice there was an excellent article on Reclaiming the Winter Solstice in the Yule 1998 issue of Widdershins.
I was spending some time online today noodling around some Pagan sites. I was astonished at how much is out there. Dozens of podcasts and videos (including our own George’s YouTube channel). There’s music available on iTunes (my faves right now are Gaia Consort and Shawna Carol). Books by the score available for download on your Kindle or Nook.
What’s your favorite Pagan media right now?
Blessings & Light
As many of you know we are preparing for Litha, the Summer Solstice. It’s one of the eight holidays that Wiccans and many other Pagans celebrate. This year the Summer Solstice is on Monday, June 21 at 7:28 a.m. EDT. Sunrise is almost two hours prior to that at 5:43 a.m. EDT.
(Those of us who celebrate together at the Owl Nest will be celebrating it a little early on Saturday, June 19th at 7pm. Don’t forget to call the ON at 301-228-2401 to RSVP!)
There are many traditions and associations for the Summer Solstice. My favorite is Greeting the Dawn. Those that know me know I’m not a morning person, but on at least the two Solstice mornings each year I do my best to haul myself out of bed in time to greet the dawn. If you’re a night owl like me, it may be easier to just stay up until the Solstice and then go to bed!
Once I’m up and moving I grab my offering and head outside. I’ll often go to a local park or even just take a walk around my neighborhood. It doesn’t much matter where as long as I can see the sun.
When the sun comes up I open myself up to it. Sometimes I’ll sing (only if I’m certain there’s no one else around to hear! :), sometimes I’ll sit quietly and meditate on the things that I planted in Spring that are now coming to fullness. I try to feel the rays of the sun on my face and know that Deity is like the sun - as powerful and as present in my life.
When I’m ready to go I leave an offering for the Fey and the spirits of the Earth. Usually I bring a little milk and honey, sometimes I’ll bring oat cakes. I leave them with a blessing and my thanks. Then I head off to work or wherever I’m going that day and I try to take that experience with me.
What are your Summer Solstice traditions? How do you plan to celebrate this year?
This Saturday will be the monthly workshop held at the Owl Nest. This month’s topic is Death and Dying in the Wiccan Tradition. What happens to us when we die? How do we make sure our religious wishes are respected after death? What does one do when a loved one dies? What traditions and rituals surround death in Wicca?
As always, please RSVP by calling the Owl Nest at 301-228-2401.
Blessings!
Linda
I had the opportunity to go the the Renn Faire yesterday (Saturday, September 19th). While I was walking around I came a cross a shop that I didn’t remember from last years’ trip called The Crone’s Grove. It was tucked away among some plants and trees so it could be overlooked for ones that didn’t want to enter, but I’m glad I did. I meet a wonderful as she would term herself “crone” and had a talk with her about current paganism and witch craft. She had several plaques around her shop such as Blessed Be and Goddess Bless, but one stood out to me and she said that she had gotten several comments about it. I wound up buying that plaque and have hung it in my altar space. It reads as follows:
I call myself a Witch because a Witch is what I am, and like a Jew in Nazi Germany I don’t define my name to suit the Master Plan…I don’t believe in Satan, he’s a poor excuse for Pan. I’m a child of the Holy Mother Earth and I’m gonna stand up to the Propaganda Man in every way I can. –Lady Isadore
I have taken this saying to heart and hope that one day Pagans, Witches and the like will be excepted and won’t have to fight so hard to be understood; but until that day I will stand with what Lady Isadore has said and never be ashamed to call myself witch and stand up for myself.
Blessed Be!
Lesley
I’m sure many of you were aware of the article that made the rounds about the CES Festival last weekend. Even the Wild Hunt reported on it.
Basically it was a small Pagan festival held in a little square lined with old fashioned shops in a place called Stroudburg Village. Some shopkeepers decided not to open and there were threats of protests by local Christian groups.
Well, considering that it was only two hours away I decided to go. Himself, knowing how important it was to me, came along for the ride. It turned out to be three because we tried to take a shortcut, but the shortcut ended up having both traffic and construction. Ah, well. We still got thee with plenty of time to enjoy the festival.
There were protesters there. Nothing so horrid as sign waving and shouting, thank the Lady. There was a truck with a huge ugly wooden cross on it in the parking lot, but I figured it was meant as a religious statement, not a threat of crucification. 
Several conservatively dressed men seemed to hover around the edges of the festival. I overheard various discussions between them and others. The words “Christ” and “Bible” and “hell” thrown around a lot.* An hour or two after we came they all grouped together and started singing some hymn I’d never heard. They sang a song or two before the property management and security asked them to stop (or leave - I wasn’t quite close enough to hear). Apparently there was some pushing, too, but I didn’t see it, nor did Himself. The cops were there, though, and made sure that things were taken care of quickly.
Other than that it was a great afternoon. The vendors were interesting. One lady had made some fantastical dolls - fairies, witches, etc. There were several with Pagan books and candles and incense and art and such. There were several amazing jewelry vendors and I wish I’d had more money to spend on shinies. I also visited several of the shops that were open. Pretty much all but two or three (out of about a dozen) were open. One was really cool - it had old player pianos and other old-fashioned mechanical music machines. Another, that I didn’t get to see, was a robot museum. Himself truly enjoyed that one. I spoke with several of the shop owners and they really were quite nice. They were happy for the business, especially considering the weather.
I did a little bit of networking. I learned a little bit about a Penn Dutch Pagan tradition that I’d never heard of before. I chatted and shopped and generally enjoyed myself thoroughly.
Blessings,
Linda
* You know, they always start from the false assumption that others believe in the unassailable truth of their position and that others are just rebelling against what’s right or true. The sort of people who think that protests like that will change minds just can’t seem to grok that others come from a different belief paradigm and are happy with that paradigm.
Wow - it’s been a year since I’ve written anything here. That will change. In the meantime, a few date reminders. Moon is on the 6th (members only). Both Mabon and the monthly workshop are the 26th (all welcome - at the Owl Nest in Frederick). Drop us a comment if you’re going to come. Also, you can find the schedule on the Meet Up page.
Blessings!
Monday was Mabon, the Autumn Equinox. Traditionally this is the second of three harvests. The first is Lammas in August and the third is Samhain in October. Mabon is the Wiccan “Thanksgiving holiday.” Apples, pumpkin, squash and other fruits and vegetables are being harvested this time of year.
This is also a great time to attend one of the many County Fairs that happen around this time of year. Many of these fairs began as farmer’s markets that people brought their newly harvested foods to sell and trade. Going to a county fair is a lot of fun and, if you’re a Suburbite born and bred like me, very educational.
I had the opportunity to attend our local fair last Saturday and it was such a treat. I had fresh-pressed apple juice from a local orchard. I tasted honey made by bees in Frederick County. I got to see local beef cows and show chickens and bunnies. 4Hers, farmers and amateurs all had beautiful crops of apples and barley and other fruits, nuts and grains on display.
When I got home I was energized. I was reminded of the cycle of the earth and of the food chain. I was reminded of what others sacrificed so that I can eat - the fluffy-legged chickens and the big brown-eyed cows, the farmers who take care of them and who grow the corn so that I can buy cornbread in the grocery store.
In such a global economy it’s easy to forget the South American farmer who grows our grapes so that we can have them in December; the itinerant workers who pick our lettuce for cents a day; the rice farmers in the Phillipines that grow the rice for the sushi we buy in the grocery store.
I challenge you to remember these people in your Mabon celebrations this week. Let the energy of the harvest and thanksgiving continue to flow through your life.
Don’t forget that the CGM’s Mabon celebration will be at the Owl Nest on Saturday, September 27th. See you there!
Mealtime Prayer
Lord and Lady, I give thanks for all those that have given of themselves so that I might eat.