In July of 2004, the EarthSpirit Community helped to sponsor a large contingent at The Parliament of the World’s Religions. The presentations offered by our group included an outdoor performance by MotherTongue.
EarthSpirit
Feeding The Dead
The EarthSpirit Newsletter Autumn 96
Feeding The Dead
by Anne Lafferty
At Samhain many members of the Earthspirit Community come together to honor the dead. Before the ritual begins, participants go to one of several ancestor shrines to speak to those who have died and listen to other people tell their own stories. During the ritual itself, we call out the names of our loved ones who have gone before. We come together to remember the dead and honor them.
Imbolc A Celebration of the Coming Spring
The EarthSpirit Newsletter Winter 94
Imbolc: A Celebration of the Coming Spring
by Anne Lafferty
The temperature is only a few degrees above zero and the wind chill factor brings it down to twenty below. This morning you had to wait three times as long as usual for your subway train because, somewhere on the line, a switch had frozen shut. A few days ago there was a snowstorm and another one is expected tomorrow night. The sidewalks are covered with several inches of ridged ice and almost every time you cross the street you have to clamber in and out of snowbanks at the sides. All your co-workers are saying that winter will never end and you’re beginning to think that they’re right. So, why, precisely, are you leaving your warm home and travelling all the way across town in the evening to do a ritual?
The Waters of Midsummer
The EarthSpirit Newsletter Lammas 96
The Waters of Midsummer
by Anne Lafferty
Midsummer is strongly connected with water and there are many beliefs and practices involving water that are associated with this time of year. Folklore being what it is, there are some apparent contradictions in these beliefs. In most of Europe, Midsummer was either a time when you specifically went into the water of a time when you specifically did not. The belief that bathing in natural bodies of water was beneficial at this time seems to have been more widespread.
Fall Gardening
EarthSpirit Newsletter Fall 95
Fall Gardening
by Edward Crow
September fifteenth. It was almost twilight and very chilly. There might be an early frost. Half the sunflowers circling the garden had dropped their heads two weeks ago; now all were brown. But at dusk the burgeoning marigolds, almost day-glo orange and yellow, showed only a few dry petals; they could survive the night. So would the squash. The banana peppers and the skinny pointed cayennes wouldn’t. In past years the gardener rushed out to rescue the basil from the first frost threat, but not tonight because then she would come home too late from her toxic institutional job. Even so, she loves the smell and the feel of dirt and since she was beginning her fast for the equinox, she went out into the chilly garden and dug a few of her potatoes for dinner. She had to find them by memory in the near-dark because the plants were long gone.
Honey-Curry Bread for Yule
EarthSpirit Newsletter Lammas 96
Honey-Curry Bread
As served at MotherTongue’s Yule 1995 performances baked by Leona Arthen
Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 tablespoon curry powder
Educating Ourselves and Our Children
The EarthSpirit Newsletter Autumn 96
Educating Ourselves and Our Children
by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen
[Since the article “Home to Me” was published in the last autumn issue of EarthSpirit, I have received numerous requests for more information about our family’s relationship with our children’s schools, so I collected some thoughts to share here. We would love to hear from other families about their experiences as well, please feel free to write to us in response. ]
FireHeart Interview with STARHAWK
STARHAWK
Healing Our Wounds ©1993
Since the ground-breaking publication of The Spiral Dance, Starhawk has been the single most visible and influential force in the Neo-Pagan revival. Thousands of people have first learned about Witchcraft from her books and workshops. In fact, the image of Witchcraft as feminist and socially engaged is largely a product of her work. A therapist, educator and activist, Starhawk is also a restless and unconventional spirit. Not allowing herself to be limited by her previous accomplishments, she is constantly growing and looking for new fields to conquer, as she has done in her recently released novel The Fifth Sacred Thing.
1999 Parliament of the Worlds’ Religions
Parliament of the Worlds Religions
December 1 – 8, 1999
Capetown South Africa
*A New Day Dawning*
In 1993 the second Parliament was held, again in Chicago. This time it was the Earth-centered spirituality which was introduced and welcomed with acknowledgment and respect for what these traditions had to offer. The week long event included workshops, services, prayer and meditation with almost every faith tradition presently in existence, concerts, cultural events, presentations from some of the world’s most respected religious leaders, notably the Dalai Lama and an assembly of religious and spiritual leaders whose members signed “Towards a Global Ethic” a document outlining principles and directives for peace, social justice and sustainability of life. EarthSpirit, along with several other organizations and tribal groups represented the Earth Religions at the Parliament and in the Assembly and signed that document.
Home to Me The development and growth of a magical family
EarthSpirit Newsletter Fall 95
Home to Me
by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen
The development and growth of a magical family
“You could send me away and I would go,
I would go but I would not go too far.
You could send me home but you would know,
Home to me is anywhere you are.“