Yule Sabbat, the Messianic Kyriat Christmas and Winter Solstice:
December 22
The winter solstice marks the longest night of the year. The
traditional folk meaning of Yule is that the Goddess awakens to find that
she is pregnant with the Solar God. The intent of the rituals for both the
summer and winter solstices are to help change the course of the Sun,
which directly affected the crops, the growing seasons, and the healthy
rhythms of the human body. With the aid of the Sun, the symbol of the
Young Solar God, the farmers have reassurance of a vibrant spring and the
blessings of the plentiful harvests in autumn.
The Roman Catholic Church then Christianized the Winter Solstice or
Yule as Christmas, or Christ Mass. Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus
at Yule, regardless of the possibility that the spring or the summer
months may be more accurate. The Catholic Church held special ceremonies
to take the place of Yule for the former earth-based religions now
encompassed by the established church.
The season of winter has been the time observed for the birth of the
young Solar God in many cultures for thousands of years. Keeping the Yule
custom, the Roman Catholic Church assigned Jesus' birth to the schedule of
the birth of the Young God as in the Pagan cultures.
Yule and Christmas have always been associated with the spirit of
giving, just as The Magi, or the Magicians, came bearing gifts to the
Christ child. The Winter Holy Days of Power are symbolic of the joy of
giving to others for centuries, regardless of the culture. Customs vary
all over the world with the childhood celebrations of the Holy King, Old
Saint Nick, Mother Berhta, and Santa Claus.
The colors affiliated with Winter Solstice, Yule, and Christmas are
red, green, white, and gold. It is easy to guess the herbs and plants
associated with Yule because the tradition has carried on to our modern
Christmas celebrations.
The herbs associated with Yule are holly, ivy, and mistletoe. Yule
herbs used as incense associated with Yule are frankincense and myrrh. The
odors of cinnamon and nutmeg are just as common today to the celebration
of Christmas as thousands of years ago with the celebration of Yule, or
even just a few hundred years ago in Europe before the colonization of the
States.
The symbol of decorating a small potted evergreen at Yule/Christmas
has been tradition since early Pagan celebrations. Other symbols include
topping the Yule trees with the Triple Moon, which is the symbol of the
Maiden, Mother and the Crone aspects of the Goddess. After the
Christianization of Yule, the star topped the tree. This affiliation with
Christ is symbolic of the Star of Bethlehem, ironically the pentacle of
the five elements. Angels also became part of the Roman Catholic
adaptation of Yule as symbols of the celestial messengers crowning the
evergreen tree. Many ChristoWiccans feel the use of the Star atop of the
tree, lends a dual purpose to this hybrid path of Jesus and the Mother.
Colonial and Early American Christmas used the decorations of Mother
Nature. Apples, oranges, lemons, and pineapples adorn doors and boughs,
just as they did in the pre-Christian Europe. Holly, mistletoe, pinecones,
and evergreens are wonderful seasonal decorations not only for the home,
but also for the altar. This is the season for the burning of the Yule
Log.
Imbolg, Oimelc, Britannia, or Candlemas: February 1st and/or
2nd
This celebratory ritual is a winter festival of purification and fire,
often-called "the Feast of Lights," Imbolc or Imbolg (pronounced "em bowl
gee"). The term Imbolg means "in the belly" referring to ewe's milk, which
marks the time pregnant ewes began lactation. It also signifies the
growing of life in the womb of Mother Earth, as Imbolg brings the first
signs of returning life in the darkness of winter.
Bridantia is the Celtic holy celebration honoring the Goddess Brigid.
She was the Irish-Celtic goddess of fire, fertility, crops, livestock,
wisdom, poetry, and household arts. Now known as Sainte Brigit, the Roman
Catholic Church absorbed the Celtic Goddess of Brigid. The Goddess Brigid
was very popular among the Irish and while practitioners of the Old
Religion took on the new All Male Christian Trinity of the Catholic
Church, they refused to give up their beloved Goddess Brigid. As opposed
to loosing the entire country of Ireland, the Roman Catholic Church
granted the Goddess sainthood. The festivals of the Triple Goddess Brigid
become celebrations in the form of a mass on St. Brigit's Day.
When the Roman Catholic Church Christianized this sabbat, it was
re-named as Candlemas. Celebrated by candlelight, processionals and
commemorates the Presentation of Christ in the Temple (Eastern Church) or
the Purification of the Virgin Mary (Western Church). It is also
traditional to light every candle in the house to honor God after dusk.
The uncomfortable aspect of Candlemas is the treatment of the mothers
at the time of the birth of Christ. In the times B.C.E., the birth process
for the mother (Mary included) was considered unclean and the mother was
not allowed to return to the temple until she was deemed purified and
cleansed by the Church authorities. This approach to humanity is quite the
opposite of the Pagan respect for birth and all forms of life, considering
the entire birthing process to be of the One Spirit, natural and
beautiful.
Imbolg also corresponds with Ground Hog's Day, the popular litmus test
for the arrival of spring, deriving from the original use of hedgehogs in
Europe. Intended to predict the coming of spring, this is a weather
divination ritual. It is humorously ironic that the American's seriously
observe this Pagan ritual of practical magick without giving it a second
thought.
The colors affiliated with Imbolg and Candlemas: White, Yellow, and
Pink. The symbols affiliated with Imbolg and Candlemas: Candles, Burrowing
Animals (such as the Ground Hog), Grain Dolly, and Sun Wheels.
Ostara, the Vernal or Spring Equinox Spring Kyriat: March
21
Ostara or Spring Equinox is a solar festival, in which day and night,
and the forces of male and female, are equally balanced. As with Mabon,
the emphasis is on balance of all things: male and female, light and dark,
and for Christians - the death and resurrection - the symbol of death and
rebirth. This is the first day of spring, which marks the adolescence of
the Sun God and makes way for the lushness of summer. Ostara was the name
of the Virgin Goddess of Spring in Ancient Germany. It immediately follows
another Christianized Pagan festival, renamed as St. Patrick's Day
observed on March 17.
Easter is the Christianization of the fertility celebration of Ostara.
The symbols affiliated with this Sabbat and Holiday: eggs more than any
other symbol celebrate Ostara. The word Easter came from the Teutons,
which was closer in pronunciation as Eostre. This is a time of birth and
renewal of all things. The eggs are also associated with the female body
in terms of procreation; it is easy to see in this association in the root
of the word such as estrogen.
The Easter Bunny had it origins with the legend of the Germanic
Goddess Eostre. The small field rabbit wished with all its heart to please
this Goddess. As a show of his devotion, he decorated the sacred eggs with
bright colors and intricate patterns and then humbly presented them to his
beloved Goddess. She was so pleased with the bunny's beautiful work, that
she wished all of humankind to join in and share her joy! Since that day,
the Eostre (Easter) rabbit has gone throughout out the world carrying out
her wishes, and delivering little decorated gifts of life.
Other celebrations include spring festivals of wine as the Greeks
observed Spring Equinox as Dionysia, after the Greek wine-god Dionysus or
his Roman counterpart Bacchus; this marks the making of the year's new
wine made from the grape harvest of last autumn. Wine can be added to the
Christian ritual of Ostara by references to Jesus and the Wedding at Cana,
when He turned the water into wine.
The colors affiliated with Ostara: pastels, yellow, pink, and
greens.
Beltane: April 30 or May 1
Beltane, which falls on April 30 or May 1, is the festival that joins
the male and female principles of The All to produce an abundance of
nature. Beltane falls on the opposite side of Samhain on the Wheel of the
Year. These two Sabbats are often considered the two most important
rituals of the year, as they mark the beginning and the end of the great
seasons: summer and winter.
The ritual of Beltane is the symbolic uniting of the two as twin
halves of a whole; take care to carry out this ceremony of cosmic
procreation with dignity and respect to all of the members in the Circle.
The Celestial Couple are the GodPair, the dual reflections of The
Almighty, the One, the All - the creative Spirit behind the essence of the
universe. The Celestial Bride and The Celestial Bridegroom are Our
Heavenly Mother and Our Heavenly Father, incapable of separation.
Beltane is one of the greatest Celtic solar festivals, celebrated in
ancient times with bonfires; the bonfires mark the occasion so greatly
that some Wiccans call all Circle fires "balefires" throughout the year.
The rites celebrate birth, fertility, and the blossoming of all life, as
personified by the union of the Goddess and the Sun God, also known in
Christianized lore as King Winter and Queen May. Folk traditions show
celebrants jumping over broomsticks, (a fertility, or matrimonial symbol)
and dancing around maypoles.
The sabbat begins at moonrise on Beltane Eve. Supposedly, it is bad
luck to be out late that night because witches and fairies roam the
countryside in great numbers and conduct wild revelries. Practitioners of
the Old Religion believe the bonfires of Beltane brought fertility and
prosperity to crops, homes, and livestock. It did indeed, because
scattering the ashes from the Beltane fires over the fields acted as a
fertilizer by enriching the soil. People dance deosil, or clockwise,
around the fires or creep between the fires for protection against
illness. At one time, farmers drove their cattle through the fires for
protection against disease by burning parasites from the raw hide of the
animal. Ancient Druids lit bonfires on hills and uttered incantations.
Church services and processionals in the fields replaced the pagan
rites when the Church Christianized the sabbat of Beltane. The priests
then lit the ceremonial fires.
The symbols affiliated with Beltane are eggs, spring flowers, and the
May Pole. Beltane is a time for butter churns, weaving flowered necklaces,
head crowns or hats known as chaplets and weaving baskets: this weaving
symbolizes taking two materials and intertwining them to create a third.
The colors affiliated with Beltane are red, green, white, and yellow.
Mid-Summer, Summer Solstice or The Baptismal Kyriat: June
21
Litha or Midsummer is a solar festival, which is almost universally
celebrated. In the European tradition, the night before was Midsummer's
Eve was a time for great magick, especially for love charms. It is
customary to pick certain herbs at midnight to bring protection against
lightning, fire, witchcraft, disease, and ill fortune. Witches and fairies
roam on Midsummer's Eve, as they do at Beltane; there is a bit of madness
in the air. Great bonfires are lit to help change the course of the Sun in
the sky; the rites resemble those of Beltane. Burning wheels are rolled
down hills, and burning disks are thrown at the sun. The zenith of the
power of the Sun God manifests in the flourishing of crops and livestock.
The Roman Catholic Church Christianized the Sabbat of Midsummer to St.
John's Day in honor of John the Baptist. The colors affiliated with Litha:
gold, green, and blue. The symbols associated with Summer Solstice are:
Fire, Sun, the blooming of the Mistletoe, and Sun Wheels.
Lammas or Lughnasadh: July 31 or August 1
Lughnasadh is the first of the three great harvest celebrations of the
Old Country: the Grain Harvest at Lughnasadh, the Harvest of Fruits at
Mabon, and the Harvest of Game at Samhain. The first harvest marks the
beginning of the waning half of the year and represents a time to put back
the bounty of the harvest for the lean months of winter approaching.
The sabbat observes the great festival of games and dance, named in
honor of the Irish Celtic solar god Lugh. The word Lughnasadh relates to
the words meaning, "to give in marriage" and once was associated with
marriage contracts. Nine months away is the next Beltane, the birth of
summer and life. In medieval legend, this festival celebrates Lugh's
marriage to the Goddess Eriu, "the Sovereignty of Ireland." According to
this lore, a hag named Eriu is transformed into a beauty that personifies
the land of Ireland. Beginning with the first harvest, a series of
celebrations and thanksgiving rites are held to ensure the continued
bounty of the crops for the coming year. Lughnasadh or Lammas is also
known as the Festival of Green Corn, Ceresalia, Elembiuos, and the Feast
of Cardenas.
Lammas, from Old English terms for "loaf" and "mass," is a
Christianized name for an old Saxon fruit-and-grain festival designated by
the early English church. The holiday celebrates the ripening of apples
and winter wheat, the latter of which, according to tradition, is made
into loaves and blessed in the church. Lammas Day also was a day to settle
accounts. In Scotland, tenant farmers took their first grain harvests to
their property owners (land barons) on August 1 to pay the rent.
The colors affiliated with Lammas: Red, Yellow, Gold, Green, and
Orange.
Mabon, Autumn Equinox or The Feast Kyriat: September 21
The Wheel of the Year turns once again; day and night, and male and
female forces are equally balanced. Mabon occurs on the Autumn Equinox,
which falls on or around September 21. This is the time for the second
harvest. Mabon is the completion of the harvest, which began at Lammas.
This is the Traditional Wiccan Thanksgiving Feast. It was brought from
Europe to America with the Pilgrims and however Christianized it may have
seemed, its roots run deep to this Celebration of Mabon. Before the era of
modern timekeeping, the peasants of Europe celebrated Mabon on September
25. Technology now allows us to calculate the exact day of the autumnal
equinox.
At the time of the Autumn Equinox, the sun enters the Zodiac sign of
Libra, perfectly symbolized by the balanced scales. It is no wonder that
"Michaelmas," a feast in honor of the Archangel Michael, was chosen to
represent this day of balance, as Michael is most often depicted with a
sword in one hand and a set of scales in the other!
We celebrate The Feast Kyriat of Jesus Christ as he fed the ten
thousand with five loaves of bread and two pieces of fish. The Miracle of
this grand feast can fall on the American holiday of Thanksgiving or the
traditional holiday of Mabon. This holiday is for celebrating the
prosperity of the year's hard work; one does not have to be farmer to
harvest a bountiful financial crop.
Staying with the themes of the Second Fall Harvest, the association with the Festival of Bacchus, the Greek of Wine and good cheer, has a welcome place for the Christian Wiccan. There is plenty reason to recognize our own Laughing Jesus, celebrating with Wine and Cheer at the Wedding at Cana.
The colors affiliated with Mabon are brown, orange, violet, maroon,
and gold. The Symbols affiliated with Mabon include grapes, wine and
garlands, gourds cornucopia, Indian corn, and sun wheels. It is also known
as the time of the Festival of Dionysus, Feast of Avalon, Alban Eifed, and
the Horn of Plenty, the Cornucopia. This is the time of rest as Nature
declines, preparing itself for winter.
Samhain, Halloween, or Hallowmas: October 31
Samhain (pronounced "sow-wen") is an ancient Celtic festival that
celebrates the end of the Wheel of the Year, marked by the death of the
Solar God, and the beginning of the Celtic New Year. Samhain formally
indicates the end of summer; Samhain literally means "summer's end." The
Druids, in ancient Ireland, once sacrificed to their deities by burning
victims in wicker cages. In those ancient times, all other fires were
extinguished and re-lit from the sacrificial fire. This custom continues
in Ireland and Scotland, all fires in homes today; practitioners
extinguish and re-light their fires from the main bonfires, but now safely
and without sacrificial victims.
Samhain marks the third harvest and the storage of provisions for
winter. On this night of the year, the veil between the worlds of the
living and dead is the thinnest. Souls of the dead can come into the land
of the living. It is during this time that Wiccans of all traditions find
it easier to communicate with their deceased loved ones. As an offering of
respect and remembrance, some Wiccans bake cakes for the souls of the
dead.
Samhain is a time for eliminating weaknesses, when farmers once
slaughtered the weak animals of the herd that may not to be able to
survive the winter. This custom has evolved into the modern practice of
ridding oneself of unwanted habits and weaknesses. The Rite of Paper and
Fire transpires by writing the undesirable qualities on a piece of paper
and dropping them into a fire. Symbolically, as the paper burns and
disappears, so do the weaknesses of the individual.
All Hallow's Eve or Halloween is the Christianized name for the Sabbat
ritual of Samhain. The modern custom of trick-and-treating may have
originated from an old Irish peasant custom of going door-to-door to
collect money, bread cake, cheese, eggs, butter, nuts, apples and other
foods in preparation for the festival of St. Columb Kill. Apples are
included in many rites, especially as ingredients in brews. Dunking for
apples may have been a divinatory practice.
The colors affiliated with Samhain and Halloween are orange, black,
and red. The symbols affiliated with Samhain and Halloween: carved
pumpkins or jack-o'-lanterns, costumes of the dead (both ghastly and
celestial), corn stalks, and bales of hay.
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