….it just goes on and on my friend. For serious.
(To be filed under #bitchingandbragging)
So, it’s almost week after Con officially ended, and I’m still wrapping up some spiritwork stuff.
priesthood
Not THAT Kind of Priest: or why I don’t proselytize for the Morrigan
Great piece on being a Morrigan priest, by Brennos.
I often go back and forth about how/if/why I should proselytize for Freya. She has no movies or books or art that has made Her famous–She’s never mentioned in the Thor movies, for example–and the general public, by and large, have never heard of Her. But as Her priestess, I know that She has the ability to heal and make whole on a lot of levels a lot of people who need it–myself included. But how will people even know to reach out to her if they’ve never heard about Her (or Heathenry, or paganism, for that matter)? It’s a conundrum, particularly as I agree with all of his points about proselytization, and have made them myself on several occasions. Granted, Freya, too, though eminently approachable, is by no means “safe”; but then, isn’t the love, healing, ecstasy, and transformation that She has to offer worth it? For better or worse, that’s not my call to make.
Putrification – Valerie Herron
http://www.valerieherron.com/
What causes a particular god or goddess to surge in popularity and how does that affect the community that is already in relationship with that deity? In many cases of this phenomena the media has a role to play in popularizing the deity, and the public interest in said deity spikes after a particular movie, television show, or book appears on the market. In some cases the particular deity has an aspect that resonates with people because of the political or physical atmosphere that the individual exists in. Sometimes, there is a rare occurrence where it appears that the deity themselves are actively recruiting devotees into their worship. In the case of the Morrigan all of these factors seem to be in play to one degree or another. There have been a number of appearances of the Morrigan in popular media, all of them…
View original post 1,374 more words
Deep thoughts: Priest/ess version
So I get pinged now and again about what it is/would be like to have that component of your primarily deity actually present in your life. For example, to be a devotee of the Morrigan’s and to be an active solider. Or to work for Zeus and be a CEO or politician. Or to follow Njord and be a tradesperson or a fisherman. Or to be a Freyaswoman… and to be in a relationship. As I’m currently not in any kind of romantic/sexual relationship (an unusual circumstance, but true nonetheless), I have to wonder–what part of Her stuff am I missing? I’ve only had the one relationship since my actual dedication (and it was powerful, but, for a variety of reasons, short), and I’m wondering what it is actually that I’m missing. (Aside from the usual benefits of a relationship 🙂 )
*shrug* Time will tell, but I wonder…. how much of our understanding of our primary entities can we truly “get” if we are not participating in their area of expertise?
Dedication Contract renewal, January 2015
I realized, while going through and organizing the Dedication process stuff I went through last year, that the reason I am doing all of that analysis work now is because She wants me to finish integrating it within myself as well. A new year, a new rendering of who I am and what it means to me to be a woman dedicated to a Goddess.
Dedication to Freya–Contract renewal, January 2015 (With a few minor updates and revisions)
Freya, I offer you my dedication. I stand here as your child, as your intermediary between Vanaheim and Midgard, the realms of the living and the realms of the dead.
I ask you to guide my way here in this world. You are aware of and understand so much more than I ever can, and from my many years of working with you, I know that you love me more fully and deeply than I can comprehend. You have given me gifts I would not have thought to ask for; you have fulfilled wishes I did not know I had. You continue to help me love myself and to see beauty in all things in the world. You have gifted me with many great experiences, and you have walked me through an initiation that has expanded and transformed the capacity of my heart.
I know that the gifts that you have given to me have been freely given. But I also know that I owe you in return.
I offer to help facilitate your voice and your presence here on earth. I will continue to spread word of your gifts and mysteries and to promote the Vanir, the Aesir, and Heathenry where I can. With your help and guidance, I will strive to be an example of a loving, compassionate priestess in a healthy God-relationship. I hope to become a living example that a relationship with you or any of the Gods can be one of the greatest blessings that we can receive.
Letter to a New Spirit Worker
Tough love for a tough path, and becoming more true for me the further along this road I get.
Dear you,
I can’t imagine what you are experiencing right now because your growth process is unlike any others. This is the first and greatest and perhaps most difficult lesson of all: You walk this path alone. You will have allies and companions and perhaps even friends along the way who will offer support and care but you will always ultimately be alone. This truth is difficult to manage but becoming comfortable with solitude will give you the mental space required to puzzle out the challenges that come ahead. Your longing for teachers and mentors is not just a desire for guidance or meaning or even instruction; it is a desire for validation and empirical support as well as the comfort of someone pointing out what you have done well and what you need to improve on. This will not happen. Whatever teachers and mentors this path makes available to…
View original post 395 more words
A Statement of Hospitality, and Frith
With the recent widespread news of the murders of black men by police officers who are not even brought to trial, there has been a combination of outraged voices, tired and despairing voices, victim blaming, and silence. I wish I believed any of this is new, but I know it’s really not. It may be news to those of us with enough privilege to have wandered through a safer world until now, but I know from the discussions I have had with those who don’t share my advantages that the only thing that’s really new is our ability to spread awareness about it.
Awareness is good. Let the word continue to spread until nobody can conveniently ignore it anymore. But awareness is not enough by itself. We can’t just know, we have to do something.
Closer to home, it has been said in the community recently that pagans…
View original post 731 more words
Coast Guard Gives Viking Funeral to WWII Veteran
And Freya smiles…
Woo! I know many people who will appreciate this, even if it is in miniature 🙂
Coast Guard Gives WWII Vet Viking Funeral at Sea
–Ember–
