The Woman's Body: The feminine image of God

Merry Meet,

There is a lot on the news and Internet about female body image. We are constantly bombarded with contradictory messages about weight and female beauty. It is so confusing, in one breath a news person tells about the rise in anorexia and bulimia and in the next breath, they are quarreling with some fellow news caster about calories consumed. There are these ads that tell girls that they are beautiful regardless of their size and yet we hold up rail thin, silicone enhanced models as the examples of perfect beauty.

I was a thin girl and teenager, my prom dress my senior year was a size five. But somewhere along the line I became a chubby woman, wearing a size 12/14. I have lost the weight once but to tell you the truth I wasn't any happier as a size eight. And I was a lot hungrier.

When Gaelyn came into my life after many years of thinking there could not be anyone out there for me, I told him that though I was happy as a chubby woman for myself, that I knew that men expected something completely different. He got up from the couch and pulled down this huge book called Images of God: Images of Women. He opened the book and laid it in my lap. In the book were pictures of all sorts of women, of modern times and antiquity. They were all shapes and sizes and hues, of all cultures and religions. He said "God made you the way you are now from the womb. Everything he does is beautiful. Why should I as a man not see you in the beauty and perfection he made you, why should I want someone who is made of plastic and poison (botox) and stains and dyes when I can have you. You are real, the symbol of the earth mother," Then he turned the page to the Venus of Willendorf, the mother goddess figure with the large belly and breasts and hips. "See, you are my Earth Goddess, you are beautiful!"

Well, he is as smooth as a baby's bottom, but he made me appreciate that not all men want what we see in the media. Some men will run with time warp speed to the woman with the fake boobs, but there are men who like the natural woman, thin or fat, short or tall, buxom or flat chested. We are all beautiful, and I don't need a bath soap to tell me that.

Brightest Blessings Be my beautiful sisters, love yourself for who and what you are and don't let some talking head tell you otherwise.

Aslinn

A Witch Shoppe

Merry Meet,

Gaelyn and I have been running a witch shoppe for the last few weeks for some friends of his who are in Europe on a buying trip. In my area there have been a couple of witch shoppes but they don't last long. I don't know if they are hounded by trad folks or there isn't enough business, but I have always like the notion of a metaphysical store where you can go in and buy things and people don't look at you sideways.

The shop is situated just outside of Colonial Williamsburg. It is a double shop space, that is it was a building with two shops downstairs and two apartments upstairs. When the couple bought the building, they opened up the two shops into one shop and made the two small apartments one large apartment.

The shop has book cases and shelves all along the walls, large display windows and tables in the center to display things. In the back is a reading room for their thousands of reference books that they do not sell but make available to the public as a library. They can sit there at the tables or in the comfortable chairs and do research. Then there is a work room/lunch room and they have a small stove and fridge and a work table. Both sides have loos.

They sell everything the witch would need. Wands of different woods and crystals are in large round cardboard containers. On slow days, I have decupaged the containers with witch symbols and wands and made them colorful. There are assorted jars of herbs that you can buy by the jar or the ounce, and I spend a lot of time just measuring the herbs for the customers. When I encounter an herb that I haven't seen or used before, I ask the customer how they use it. I have gained so much information from various trads and pratices that I have filled a steno pad, as I do take time to jot down the uses.

There are of course new and used books and I have spent time reading them and taking notes on them in the apartment above at night. Gaelyn has bought me a couple of boxes worth and I have sent them home and cannot wait to read them. I make candles in the back, some the usual kind and some are made custom for one person or other who needs a special candle for a ritual or spell.

One of the things I do like very much and wrote one of my good students about were the brooms. They are hand made and some have detailed carvings of the celtic and norse style, some African and South American. They are well made and you could actually use them for sweeping if a muggle happened to pop in and buy one, for they are truely the most beautiful brooms I have ever seen. Some of them have rosemary and lavender and lemon grass woven in with the broom straw on the brush. A few are plain and the buyers can carve them anyway they wish. One little muggle lady bought a broom and wand for her grandson who is simply waiting for his Hogwarts letter any day.

To tell the truth, though, many people who wander in think at first that the shop is just a hippy shop because we burn incense and play celtic and pan flute music. When they realize that they have spent upwards of an hour in a witch shop they are amazed. I had one lady ask me "Are you really a witch?" and I said yes and she said "You don't look like a witch!" and I told her that was because witches look like everyone else.

I like to perch on the high stool with the padded back and look out the window. Gaelyn and I wear khaki pants and white button down shirts, nothing at all conspicuous. I suppose that there are many people who recognize the shop as a witch shop. I like to watch the people as their eyes go over the front of the shop and then just notice me sitting there, reading or sewing.

You can always tell when a muggle comes in and they know what sort of shop it is. They are wary, a bit nervous, and they are all eyes. They are there for a purpose. Most women, if Gaelyn asks if he can help them, say that they are just looking. Then they spot me. "Can I help you?" I ask.

Usually it is about love. They want to know if love potions will work. Sometimes it is about the future and I read their cards for them, free of charge. I always steer muggles away from magikal solutions. I wouldn't want them to dabble and I wouldn't want them to give up on themselves and always seek a magikal solution for everything.

I haven't had any bad experiences, knock on wood, except for one of those smudgy little Jack T. Chick tracts that fundamentalists like to hand out left on one of the shelves. I just threw it away. No sense in making my visit a bad one.

Boxes come in everyday and they have to be inventoried and put up on the shelves. We got a case of hand sized tarot cards the other day and I bought a few decks to bring back to my little witches back home. We close at five and I go out with Gaelyn to dinner or I cook something upstairs.

We have enjoyed our stay and have learned a lot and worked hard. I think we will miss the shop when we return home.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn and Gaelyn

Change of Title

Merry Meet!

I have decided to change the title of my blog to Christian Witch so that more people will find me. Hope this doesn't confuse anyone.

Aslinn

Check out the Almanac

Merry Meet!

Hey there guys, I have been working on the Christian Witch Almanac Blog for 6 months now. It is pretty good and very fun to put together. I have each day, the moon cycles and the days of the saints and special events in the witchcraft community as well as Sabat days. Hope you are enjoyingmy almanac and if anyone who is looking at it would like to suggest an added feature or would like to submit a five or six paragraph essay on the topic of your choice, email me at aslinndhan01@yahoo.com and submit your topic idea or the article as a word document or simply in the body of your email and I will let you know if and when it will be posted

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

America the Responsible

Merry Meet!

We are feeling the pinch. There is no doubt about it. Gasoline prices are up and jobs are shrinking. Our resources are limited. But what does a witch do? We are supposed to be concerned with what happens to Mother Earth and I think we try to be. Not always but we try.

But this is not just a problem for witches, it is problem for us all. When gasoline was $1.50 we didn't care, we drove our big SUV's and trucks and gave not a thought in the world to the impact we are having on our world. Now we are in this damnable war and we are under more pressure to find what we can do to have plenty and not waste.

First of all, try to travel less if you have a big SUV or truck. Carpool to work, church or sabat. Shop together at the grocery store. Use fewer petroleum goods. Use and reuse. Donate to and shop at second hand shops, wash clothes in cold water, hang some things to drip dry, put kitchen scraps, excluding meat and bones, into a scrap bucket and compost it, turn up your thermostat and turn down your lights. And vote. You heard me. Vote and get people in office who have a plan to help your local and state and federal government get on the right track.

We can make it through this hard time we are having. We just have to think before we do.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

What is Patriotism

Merry Meet!!

Most folk in the Craft community do not think of themselves as political, mostly because there just aren't that many witches in office. But, with the elections upon us and the debate over patriotism always used as a campaign platform, I just felt that I should stand up and throw my two cents into the fray.

First of all let me say that I do not speak of one candidate over the other. I think all Americans or any free people who have the right to vote should at least vote. If you don't vote you can't complain.

Second let me say that I never saw myself as patriotic. I was a rebel and a black sheep and something of an extreme liberal in my teen years. I joined groups like Green Peace and Amnesty International and I wrote to people like FW Declerk and demanded that he free Nelson Mandela and then give the black South Africans the freedom to vote and I joined in other sort prisoners of conscience campaigns but I never felt strongly about my country until I went to work for Vietnam Veterans.

But patriotism for me was less about saluting the flag and more about making sure that all Americans were able to enjoy their fair share the promises made to every American. I love my country, at least the ideals of my country. I understand fully that we have many injustices, racism, sexism, classism, creedism, but there is still the promise in America that does not exist in any part of the world.

Patriotism isn't about just about who served their country, or who didn't or who wears an American Flag on their lapel, it is about what you are willing to stand up for. Are you willing to stand up and say "Enough!" to social injustice in your country and other countries? Are you willing to help a person up? I say "Stand on my shoulders and when you get up there, hold your hand down to me and we will pull someone else up together" It is the rule of three in action.

Patriotism is not about saluting the flag and saying the pledge, but it is about standing still and silent when someone else does it. It is not about getting choked up when we hear the Star Spangled Banner, it is about understanding the words and emotions and feeling a part of the land of the free and the home of the brave. The song means nothing if the words do not ring true.

Patriotism is not about one nation under God if you cannot celebrate the image of God in your own way, whether your creed's symbol is a cross, or a cresent or a six pointed star or a five pointed star.

Patriotism is about being the best part of your nation, not her symbols, not her songs, not her military might. It is about seeing injustice and trying to right it, it is about lending a helping hand, it is about exercising the rights of any free citizen of a free nation.

So may God bless America, regardless of how you see the sacred and God bless Americans, regardless of your notion of patriotism.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Medieval Faire

Merry Meet!!

Gaelyn and I went to the Medieval Faire last week. I have been going for years with my circle sisters. Throughout the year I make shawls and tarot pouches with celtic designs and herbal candles and little spell books and decoupaged boxes and other witchy/ medieval goods. I make enough of a profit to stay at the faire for the whole week and enjoy being with my circle sisters and other folk who practice the way of the wise. Not all participants do, but there are enough of us to have a regular Craft convention.

These faires are fun. We have a tent, army style, fitted out with medieval and celtic hand painted patches over it. That is another thing I do, I cut out twelve by twelve squares and draw elaborate celtic designs and medieval shields and hand paint them and then sew them to the body of the tent. So the olive drab tent we started with now looks like a dramatic jousting tent from a fairy tale. I make about a dozen a year. My Gaelyn made some honey mead and brought some jars of honey and some of my sisters make wine, which is pretty good.

After the sales day is over, we have events, like jousting and sword contests and highlander games style exhibitions. We also have jugglers and magicians who perform sleight of hand and gymnasts and dancers. One outfit does various morality plays. This year they did a version of a Faustian style story. It was very good and in some parts rather scary.

When all of the tourists are gone for the night, we wise folk (aka Witches) get together and raise energy, dance and sing and share stories and magik. I met with a great little bunch of Christian witches from Pennsylvania and I am hoping they will be writing in and sharing some of their stories and articles for the almanac.

One of the things that did bother me is the amount of manufactured goods. I know that there are a lot of fine companies who make medieval apparel and I understand you might have to resort to them for leather goods and shoes and boots, but many of the dresses and blouses and skirts can be handmade and should be handmade. And there is the issue of simple things like pouches and bags and the like that came from retail stores and mail order like the Pyramid company.

But I had a great time and we made a few bucks to keep us comfortably at the faire and pay for our gas back home and keep us excited about the next faire. If you get a chance to go to a Medieval Faire, go, you will have a great time.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Love Spells: I Called the Witch Doctor

Merry Meet!

They call you late at night, breathless and a little apprehensive. They confess to you that they have met someone they could fall in love with but they don't know their secret love is crazy about them. Then with baited breath they say: "Couldn't you mix up a little love potion #9" They have their hopes and dreams wrapped up in a magikal solution.

What do you say to that person? How do you explain that it is against your ethics to try and control someone with a spell or potion? Is there a way to help this person?

There is a way and it is not to try to magikally control the person, but to enhance the person who is infatuated with the object of their desire. Most of the time the person who is the admiree is afraid of rejection from the admired. A short charm for them recite to give them courage may be all they need. A small talisman to make them feel desireable may do the trick. To enhance the one who is love stricken and make them more friendly and have more confidence is what that person needs. They would not really want that person to be fascinated with them just because of a spell, they would hopefully want the person to admire them for who they are.

You might also do divinatory work for them. You might want to see if they are a good match. If you practice astrology, you might want to see if their signs match up. You might want to do some tarot readings for them. There are other things you can suggest.

Remind them that not all desires are fulfillable and even if you do these for them, they may not get the person who is their focus. Tell them to keep in mind that fate may have a different partner in mind for them.

Blessed Be
Aslinn

A Petition for Wiccan Chaplains

Merry Meet!

Here is a little something I wanted to let you know about. It is a petition for the US Military to provide for Wiccan Chaplains. Many Wiccan trads hold that at a ceratin level you are the priest/ess of your own trad, but to have a Wiccan Chaplain would ensure that the Wiccans in our armed services would be able to have some expectation of the ability to celebrate the Sabbats and have time to raise energy and pray with fellow Wiccans. Follow the links or paste them on your browser and sign the appeal.

FWD: Petition to get Wiccan Chaplains into the U.S. Armed Forces

Posted by: "~)0(~ Mishka" mishka.wytch@gmail.com hekate6164

Mon May 26, 2008 9:39 pm (PDT)

Petition to get Wiccan Chaplains into the U.S. Armed Forces

There are over 5000 Wiccans serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. However,
there are currently NO Wiccan Chaplains. This is a petition to get
Wiccan chaplains accepted. Other religions with small numbers are
allowed chaplains.

Among the nearly 2,900 clergy on active duty are 41 Mormon chaplains for
17,513 Mormons in uniform, 22 rabbis for 4,038 Jews, 11 imams for 3,386
Muslims, six teachers for 636 Christian Scientists, and one Buddhist
chaplain for 4,546 Buddhists.

In 2007, when a pentecostal chaplain turned Wiccan he applied to change
his religious affiliation to Wicca, and the Army railroaded him out of
Iraq and out of the Army. This is unacceptable.

Sign this petition and tell the the Army Chief of Chaplains office and
other government officials that Wiccans deserve chaplains and should be
afforded the same rights as other religions.

http://pagancauldron.com/modules/xpetitions/index.php?id=1

~Mishka

http://www.myspace.com/YaYaMishka
http://www.myspace.com/MishkaWytch
http://www.covenspace.com/MishkaWytch

Thanks to Chris and Mishkawytch for their information.

Blessed Be
Aslinn

A Christian Speaks of Wicca and Witchcraft

This article appears on numerous witchcraft and Wicca sites and I love it so much, I wish to add it to my blog. Thanks www.wicca.com for having the article available. It is also on my links.

A Christian Speaks of Wicca and Witchcraft
by James Clement Taylor

I am a Christian and not a Wiccan. A Christian is one who has been baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and who has made a personal, free-will decision to commit himself and all his or her life to our Lord and God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Both of these things are true of me. I am a member of St. Mary's Eastern Orthodox Church, Calhan, Colorado. In this paper, I am not speaking as agent for any church, but I am, entirely on my own responsibility, speaking the truth in love, as we Christians are supposed to do.

A Situation of Strife and Shame:

There are many Christians today who believe that anyone who is not a Christian is doomed to an eternity of suffering in hell. Any decent person, believing this, would be compelled to try to save as many people from this fate as possible. But is this belief correct? Jesus Christ, having noted the faith and righteousness of a Roman centurion, a Pagan, proclaimed:

"Assuredly I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 8:10-12)

If we accept these words as true, and surely we should, then it is clear that heaven will contain many who are not Christians, and hell will contain many who are! Clearly, throughout the Gospels, Jesus Christ sets forth the criteria for entrance into the kingdom of heaven, and those criteria include love, kindness, forgiveness, and a refusal to judge others:

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." (Matthew 6:14-15)

"For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the same measure you use, it will be measured back to you." (Matthew 7:2)

"But go and learn what this means: `I desire mercy and not sacrifice.'" (Matthew 9:13)

"Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven." (Luke 6:36-38)

Is it not clear? Anyone who fails in these things, will calling himself a Christian save him? Anyone who obeys God in these things, will being unbaptized condemn him? Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven." (Matthew 7:21)

Yet it is not by good works that we earn our way into heaven, because there is no way we can earn the free gift of God's mercy and grace, which alone can save us. But it is clear that it is not by faith, in the sense of sharing the Christian faith, that we are saved, either. The faith which saves us is not faith in the goodness of our works, nor faith that we have the right theology and/or belong to the right church. Rather, it is faith in God, and in His mercy:

"So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who has mercy." (Romans 9:16)

But the Wiccans, you will say, do not have faith in God. Yet by their own theology, they certainly do. Those who call them Satan-worshippers are entirely wrong. They do not worship Satan, or even believe that Satan exists. Instead, they worship a Goddess and a God whom they understand as manifestations of a higher and unknown Deity.

Now if you are a Christian, this will sound familiar to you, and it should. In the Bible we find the following:

"Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, `Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, The One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you" (Acts 17:22-23)

The Wiccans worship the Unknown God, as manifested to them in the form of a Goddess and a God. Therefore, our Bible tells us they worship the same God we do; and if they do not know this, we should know it!

For those of us who are unable to simply stand on God's Word, and must prove to themselves the truth of what it proclaims the holy Apostle John has given us the method for doing this. You have only to attend any public Wiccan ceremony, and test the spirits which are there, to see "whether they are of God" (1 John 4:1). You will find that, while the power manifested there may be less than what you have experienced as a Christian, that power is clearly the power of God.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, these people of Wicca have been terribly slandered by us. They have lost jobs, and homes, and places of business because we have assured others that they worship Satan, which they do not. We have persecuted them, and God will hold us accountable for this, you may be sure, for He has said, "Assuredly I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me." (Matthew 25:40)

Let us, from this point onward, repent of our misdeeds and declare that henceforth we shall obey Christ our God, and not judge others or condemn them, so that He will not have to judge and condemn us for our sins.

Witch Hunts Still Happen

Kenya mob reportedly burns 11 ‘witches’
Police say locals accused women and men of ‘bewitching’ their children

updated 3:37 p.m. ET, Wed., May. 21, 2008

NAIROBI, Kenya - A group of up to 300 young men have burned to death 11 people suspected of being witches and wizards in western Kenya — in some cases slitting their victims' throats or clubbing them to death before burning their bodies, officials said.

The gang moved from home to home through two villages, identifying their victims by using a list with names of suspected witches and wizards and the kind of spells they were believed to have cast on the community, said Ben Makori, a local councilor.

"The villagers are complaining that the (suspected) wizards and witches are making the bright children in the community dumb.... These (suspected) witches are not doing good things to us," Makori told The Associated Press on the phone.

Deputy police spokesman Charles Owino said the gang hunted down the eight women and three men in the western Kenya villages of Kekoro and Matembe. Most of the victims were between 70 and 90 years old, Owino said.

Senior administrator Njoroge Ndirangu said the gang hunted down their victims Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.
Victims slashed or clubbed in some cases the gang pulled the victims out of their homes, slit their throats or clubbed them to death, said a police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.
The victims were then thrown back into their homes, which the gang had already set on fire, the officer said. He said 36 houses were burned.

Another police officer, Mwaura Njoroge, said the body of a victim burned to death in her house was, "reduced to something so small, you cannot tell which is the leg and which is the arm."
"How can they (the young men) prove that a person is a wizard? It is likely that the people who committed these killings had personal vendettas against their victims," Njoroge said.

"These people identified who is to be killed by accusing their victims of bewitching their sons and daughters," said Ndirangu, the commissioner in charge of Kisii Central district, where one of the villages is located.

Ndirangu said that residents are superstitious and have often targeted suspected witches and wizards, but this week's attack was the most shocking in recent years.

The police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity said investigators had little hope of making progress because the villagers have refused to identify the people who carried out attacks.

Amazing things Happen even in the midst of Prejudice

Merry Meet!

Gaelyn and I are attending a witch conference this week and this was something that happened to us last night. It just goes to show that even negative things can turn into positive energy.

Boy what a night!!!! Let me tell you what happened, you won't believe this!!! Gaelyn and I went to dinner and went to our circle meeting and then went to the bale fire circle. While we were there, the local campus Christian folks were there. You know, I had never experienced prejudice before...a little harassment when I used to shave my head, but other than that, nothing I couldn't ignore. We weren't even wearing ceremonial clothes, just jeans and a white blouse for me and a white poet's shirt for Gaelyn. I had flower crowns for us to wear for the circle but they were in this canvas bag I was carrying.

This good looking kid with a white Campus Crusade for Christ came up and asked what the bon fire was for and I said it was a May fire and we were having a unity circle. He looks at me and says you know, hell burns hotter than that fire. I looked at him and asked him what he was talking about. He said that I was going to hell for being a witch and that it was a shame he couldn't carry out the commands of the Bible and suffer not a witch to live. There were little kids and babies going to the fire and they started shouting that we were all going to hell and that we were damned and the kids started crying. So I spotted this police officer and I told him that we were being harassed and we needed the people to move back because they were scaring the children who were coming to the fire celebration. So this cop calls in a few fellow officers and start to move the people back and they started throwing stuff at us!!!!! One lady had a rock hit her on the eye!!!! It really marred the night for us. We still had our bale fire and the High Priest who was leading it asked us to send our anger to the fire and to pray that their hatred and anger would be burned up with the fire, but it was awful!!!! After the fire, a couple of witches even got mad at us Christian witches. But the neatest thing happened.

The High Priest came over to the group and he told us that this was not the way to show unity in the face of challenge and that anyone who worked Craft were entitled to be witches regardless of their religion and any witch who thought otherwise were not true followers of the Rede and then he said something that I have fervently believed ever since I became a witch. He said someday the government would want all of our lives because we believed something that would someday be considered heresy. He said that included anyone who believed in anything, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Wicca and the Craft. He then looked at us Christian Witches and said "You are my Brothers and Sisters in the wise way, and you are brothers and sisters of the Christ. That makes us all family and I fight for my family" and walked away....It was the most incredible thing.

So, we sort of stood there and looked at each other and the Wiccan and Pagan Witches apologized and embraced us and it turned into the most wonderful meeting of the minds. We got together and sat in this coffee shop until they ran us out early this morning and we found a diner and had breakfast together and we agreed this was the most amazing thing we had ever experienced in our Craft lives.....It was wild. And the magikal energy was so intense...it blew my mind.....

There are hidden blessings everywhere if we wait and be patient for truth to win out.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn and Gaelyn

The secret of Absinthe

Merry Meet!!

Well, the secret is out and they have the proof. 140 proof, that is. Absinthe is just a high powered alcoholic drink. There is no true narcotic style effect.

This is important to know. Many who follow a Goth life style tout its effects of producing hallucinations and dream and trance states. The truth is, absinthe is just rot gut, plain and simple.

I do of course believe in the powers and energies of wormwood, the primary ingredient. Wormwood is a great magikal herb used in small quantities but it is toxic and must be used carefully.

The reason I find this information so important is that the Goth community has latched on to it of late as a way to open up their minds and senses. All they are really doing is getting drunk. Goths also tend to dabble in magik and drunkeness and magik is dangerous folly. Dabbling is always dangerous but dabbling while intoxicated is doubly so. Remember, the first rule of witchcraft is to harm none,this includes yourself.

Beware and be well.
Brighetst Blessings Be
Aslinn

Beltane Approaches

Merry Meet!

It seems like yesterday I was writing about Yule and talking about presents and wintertime. Now it is Beltane and I am planning my herb garden and my flower beds and waiting for that last frost and spate of cold weather to finally go away.

For witches of Wiccan and Pagan traditions, Beltane is the time of Mother Earth renewing herself in nature and gowning herself in the greens and riotous colors of spring. Spring is the season of renewal and witches renew themselves and their talents and energies. It is the time that they clean not just their cupboards but their souls, too, set new goals, rid themselves of regrets for things done and undone and look forward to the growth of living things.

Gaelyn and I are champing at the bit to busy setting up his herb garden and cleaning his herb racks. I have herbs growing already in little biodegradeable pots, sunning themselves by the light of a grow lamp. I can already smell the fragrances from their new leaves when I lightly stroke them. Lavender, rosemary, thyme and catnip, St. John's Wort and mint and sage fill the little house he is renting with the smells of nature and magik.

I will watch them grow and become full and in August they will be mature enough to harvest and bind with twine and dry out on the drying racks and when we use them in magik, I will pull a few precious dry leaves and smell them and remember them as they grew. But I will also know that these herbs, though they are dry, are still alive with the energy of the earth, the elements, and the love I gave them as I watched over them as they grew that whole summer. And they will carry some of that summer inside them, even in the snows and cold and wet of Yule.

Thanks be to God who empowers all living things and thanks be to Mother Earth for her bounties and the promise of new life. May the sacred spirit you praise and honor do the same for all of you who practice the Way of the Wise.

Brightest Blessinsg Be
Aslinn

Building the Christian Witch Altar

Merry Meet!

One of the things that attracted me to Catholicism was a home altar I once saw in a person's house. It was a simple affair really, with a small statue of Jesus and Mary and a candle and Bible. Nothing to it. But resonated strongly with me and when I became a Catholic, I built myself a home altar. I love it.

When I became a Christian Witch, I found that the home altar was a integral part of witchcraft and casting. The home altar becomes your sacred space and this is where you gather energy to cast and create and work magik. Altars are very personal and can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish.

Now, there are a lot of witchcraft writers that wool you about directions you should have your table facing and the shape of the table and what you should have on it. And that is fine, if you want to follow a formula for a while until you get a sense of how you use sacred space. I follow only few rules for the creation of an altar.

Think about how much space you have and how you plan to use it. Are you going to have large pieces of art, a large Bible, and a big cauldron on your table? If this is your plan, buy a nice big table. I wished I had more room because I would actually have a eight foot table set up with the main part of the altar in the center and then work surfaces with my book of shadows and cauldron on one end and my Bible and Prayer book and candle array on the other. I would also have storage underneath for all of my witchcraft books and supplies. But as it is I force myself to work in a rather small space so I don't go crazy.

Next think about efficiency. Are you a frequent duster? Or do you dust about once a month or just before a ritual? Are you a neat nick or a clutter bug?

Next think about devotion. If you are a Christian, are you devoted to Jesus Passion? if you are, a nice Crucifix might be great as a central image. You might use pictures or plaques instead of statues to cut down on use of table space. Do you have a sacred fire? If you are like a lot of us, you might not have an actual hearth so a nice large pillar candle may be serving as Sacred Fire. You may also want to have your Bible on display. If you do not already have one, you may want to get a slimline style that is small, or use a New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs.

If you use a cauldron, it is fine to have a really big one, but if you are using a small table top, you may want look for a small one. And one of the things I use to actually cook potions is a simmer jar that is suspended over a tea light. We rarely cook large amounts of potion any more and you can cook it thoroughly and when it cools decant it safely. It also saves plenty of room for your work.

It is great if you have room for your book of shadows on your altar, but what I do is usually take the pages out of my book (my BOS is a three ring binder) and cast using the pages. It makes for easier reading and handling. You can also jot down the spell and take it to your altar.

Above all, have fun with your altar. Think of it as you magikal platform or room. Try to use your imagination and by all means honor who you are and express your best relationship with God

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn Dhan

What to say to trad Christians who condemn you

Merry Meet!

You may have to accept that your Christian friend will never fully accept the fact that you are a witch. There is just no convincing them of it. They have read those verses in the Bible about not allowing a witch to live and they equate what we do with the descriptions laid out in the Bible of sacrificing children to idols and mixing poisons and superstition.

To understand the difference between what you do and what the Bible prohibits, you have to understand what witches do and why. We can say with absolute authority that we do not sacrifice babies to idols, we sacrifice nothing at all, which, I would remind any one who questions what I do, that early Jews and Muslims did and in some very orthodox communities still do. We follow the rede which commands us to harm none and the teaching of Jesus which says that God does not delight in the blood of doves and lambs for the washing away of sins.

We do not practice necromancy. That is the conjuring of the dead. This a practice done by sorcerers and spiritualists. If we communicate with dead people, like beloved relatives, it is because they communicate with us, we do not use rituals to force the dead to speak to us. Even Jesus, before his Ascension into heaven appeared to the disciples in a glorified, supernatural state.

We do tell fortunes, but we tell them for free and we use them as tools to enrich our lives, not as promotion of superstition. If I throw the cards for you and it forewarns you of say a relationship that is unhealthy, you can take that information and analyze the situation and get out of it. If I tell you the cards indicate that you are in danger of an accident, that does not mean you should cower under your bed, but to be careful, go about your routine and take no unnecessary risks. It is just a little more than telling you to have a good day at school or work and to be careful. It is the same with any form of divinations.

We do mix up potions but science confirms that herbs, spices and scents do affect change in us. Using natural methods to pep us up, calm us down, relieve depression, heal or to transport us into a meditative state is not a sin. If it were, God would have not ordered the burning of incense and sage and other spices and oils in the temple with the ark of the covenant. As witches, we do not poison or cause harm to anyone or anything.

Amulets, talismans and totems are nothing in and of themselves, it is the power and energy we give them. If there were true prohibitions, we would not wear the cross/crucifix, the star of David or saints medallions. These are all talismanic in that we transfer energy to them to protect us and keep us safe as we go through our lives. It also tells people who we are and what we believe in. To make them objects of superstition is the sin implied here.

Objects like wands, staffs, brooms, swords and athames are just that. For example, in the twenty third Psalm it says"Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me" The rod to me is my wand, and my staff is my sage staff. Jesus said that if you did not own a sword, to go and buy on for we are as sheep among the wolves. The athame functions the same way. It begins as the woman's kitchen knife. Your mother, I am sure, has a favorite knife in the kitchen. It feels good in your hand, it is the knife she looks for to chop vegetables or herbs or meat, the athame is just a dressed up ceremonial version of that. My first athame was just a sharp kitchen style knife for years. In the ancient times, when cutlery was difficult to make and find, the woman of the house carried her knife in a scabbard from her belt so no matter where she went she would have that useful tool with her. My cauldron is the place where warmth and comfort and food and drink are found. It is not evil. If I were cooking up toads and cat heads in it, that would be different, but I make potions and burn spells and candles and incense in it. I dry flowers in it. Brooms are just ancient women's weapons or tools that tie us to our Craft past, but I don't always use my broom (the last time was at a handfasting ceremony for two gay guys who wanted to have a commitment ceremony, so I officiated their handfasting, it was my first act as a Priestess, as a matter of fact, and it was a Christian ceremony)

There are mentions of certain woods that are holy to God and specifically ordered them for the temple. There are stones and crystals beloved by God and is a part of the old temple and new temple to come from the sky in the moment of the Second Coming. Numbers and animals have symbolic meanings throughout the Bible. It even says that young men will dream dreams and old men would see visions (or vice versa).

As Jesus said: "devils cannot cast out devils" "evil men cannot heal". We could do none of the things we do without the blessings of God.

There are gads of ways to look at those verses. The thing is, people have no clue how the Bible was written, how words were translated, even political agendas that effected it.

But listen,don't do anything if you think it will not honor God. If you feel that this is not the way to honor God, that is okay. Craft is not for everyone. But if you think you honor God and carry out the mission of Christ, if you think Craft helps you access the powers and energies promised to us to heal, cast out demons, comfort and bless, then do it.

There are tons of prohibitions in the OT. You are not supposed to cut your hair/sideburns, women aren't supposed to wear men's clothing, women are supposed to cover their hair, you can't have tattoos and piercings. We aren't supposed to eat pork, shrimp, lobster, or clams and oysters, women are supposed to be segregated from men during their periods and after childbirth. These are all prohibitions that would make you unclean and unable to sit in the temple, take part in sacraments, keep us separated from God. I'm sure most trad Christians doesn't adhere to all those things either. At any rate, whatever you do, do it because it is right between you and God. Do nothing to please anyone, not me, not your friend, not your pastor or your mother and father. Do it because it pleases God.

Magik is neither black nor white. Magik is natural, it works with the earth, the elements, and with the seasons and tides. The witch is who makes the magik negative or positive. Being a Christian and a witch means that we work under two very distinct sets of ethics, the Bible and rede. Jesus said that we would be able to work all wonders perform all miracles and sacraments so long as we do it in his name. The Craft is our inheritance. Jesus empowers my witchcraft and practice, and Jesus alone. The angels and Saints are simply his agents who work unceasingly for us on our behalf.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

How does a Christian Witch participate in a Wiccan/Pagan ritual?

Merry Meet!

As the Craft community grows in number and variety there will be time when you may be celebrating Sabat or Esbat with Pagan/Wiccan circles. How do you participate when you may be the only one of the participants in a non-Christian circle?

Approaches differ. It depends on whether or not the circle will permit you to participate. If they do, this is how you might you might go about being respectful the circle while raising energy in the name of the Christian God.

Many covens or circles begin with a calling of the corners. Sometimes this is about calling the elements, sometimes it is about calling the watchtowers. This can be in the form of devas or faery folk. If this is the case you can call upon the archangels. The archangels tend to also be a part of Wiccan/Pagan practices as they are increasingly incorporating elements of the holy kabbalah. If they call upon their gods and goddesses, you may call upon the Trinity, the Blessed Virgin and or any of the Saints you are attracted to. Above all, be respectful. When other pantheons are being called, stand still, do not speak,and when your turn comes to raise energy call out clearly. Raise your arms or uplift your hands, palm up. Cross your arms at the breast when other gods and goddesses are invoked. It declares to the circle that you are being respectful to their tradition even if you do not call on upon their sacred spirits.

On the disposition of cakes and ale in formal circle cerimonies, you may wish to abstain. When the cakes and ale come your way pass it on to the next celebrant with a smile and a blessed be. After the cerimony there will be other refreshments, cakes and ale is not simple refreshment, it is sacramental and you may be uncomfortable eating food offered to the honor of other pantheons.

If the circle is celebrating in a way that is uncomfortable to you, you may absent yourself from the circle by quietly stepping out of the circle, opening and closing the circle with your wand or wand hand. Intone: I open this circle but the space remains sealed. or some other formula. If you leave the circle, do not re-enter it. You may disrupt the cerimony.

But do not simply join a circle and participate without discussing things with the high priest or priestess. This shows respect. We, after all, do not wish to be inconsiderate or intrusive. This is not the way to create a bridge between the Christian Witch and the Pagan/Wiccan community.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Bell, Book and Candle: What to do when your church discovers you are a witch.

Merry Meet!

I received an email from a young witch friend I know through numerous email conversations. The email detailed a situation I had never encountered before. This young 20 something witch had been practicing the Craft for five or six years. Recently, a friend of hers who had been Craft interested joined another church and got saved. She went to her pastor and told him that she was a little confused because she was a Christian but still wanted to practice Craft but felt conflicted. After much intense scrutiny, the person revealed who had been answering questions for her about the Craft. The pastor then took it upon himself to tell the witch's pastor that she was practicing witchcraft. The pastor dismissed her from her Sunday School position and then told her that if she did not "repent" from her "sin" of witchcraft that she would be excommunicated from the congregation, which eventually happened.

Of course this troubled her a great deal. I asked permission to discuss her situation with Gaelyn. This is what we came up with together.

It is difficult to follow the dual paths of Christianity and witchcraft. To do so means that often you must practice one part of your faith in isolation from the other. Of course this can cause conflict and trouble for the Christian Witch practitioner. You must be mature and strong enough to practice both, though one you practice in your heart.

Should circumstances arise that you would be discovered, you may have to make a difficult choice. Do you confess your "sin" and repent? Or do you walk away from the congregation and find another?
Both decisions are difficult and not to be made lightly.

Gaelyn and I recommend that you first search your heart. If you feel guilty for practicing Craft, you shouldn't be practicing Craft at all. If you feel good about your Craft practice, begin a spiritual journey to find a new congregation to be a part of. It may even be a new religion you seek. Take your time, do research, visit many churches and houses of worship. Consider it a form of spiritual quest. Try to see what you are supposed to learn.

Should you disclose your witchcraft? Why should you. If you are practicing it within the constraints of what we Christian witches think of as good work, then no, you need not disclose. There were things that even Jesus said were to be kept secret until his resurrection. (the transfiguration, for example) Witchcraft is not about converting others nor is it about setting limitations. Witchcraft is occult, secret, private practice, and as Jesus said, we should invoke God in private in prayer and confession and repentance.

The sad truth is that we have not yet been able to overcome prejudices people have held against witches for centuries, long before the Bible and not just within Judeo-Christian/Islamic circles but in traditional and tribal religions, witches have a tarnished reputation. It may be many lifetimes before we are accepted by any trad religions.

Do not let the closed mind of others tear yourself away from a relationship with God. If all fails, worship God at home, pray, read the Bible, sing songs of praise and do whatever you wish in the manner of prayer. As I have said many times that though I love my religion, I know that it is a human institution and the Kingdom of God is wherever you stand.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Happy Dedication Day Tanith

Merry Meet!

Listen Brothers and Sisters of the Craft. We have a new Sister in the way of the wise. Welcome her to our circle.

A poem for your dedication



Welcome thou Maiden of the Moon



The Night Orb rises high

Casting upon us the light of Magikal Benediction

For on this night, a sister comes

And adds to the tribe of the Children of God

Who raises energies, speaks to the trees,

And knows the wisdom of the ancients.

Born again soul, sister to the Christ

Daughter of the Maiden of the Moon

Witch and Christian, I charge thee:

Serve God, serve Jesus and his mother

In what image you find her

Learn the way of the wise

Know the ways of Mother Earth

Of her seasons, the elements, and all living creatures

You are a priestess, seer, healer and warrioress

It is your heritage and your birthright

Keep the Laws of God and the Witches Rede

And your own will and the goodness of your heart

Welcome Sister into the circle

Merry Meet, Merry Part, Merry Meet Again

And Brightest Blessings Be



Happy dedication day Tanith Luna Crevan

You may now consider yourself a named witch of the first degree



Brightest Blessings Be,
Aslinn and Gaelyn

When things seem to go wrong...what is a Christian Witch to do?

Merry Meet,

Sometimes, despite everything we try to do, troubles come our way, no matter what. We are never promised the easy road, whether we are Christians or Christian Witches or Wiccans and Pagans, sometimes things just seem to burden us and trouble us.

We can do one of two things. We can become dispaired, and we all feel this way one time or another, or we can learn from it and try to understand what we are supposed to do now in our life. Sometimes, bad times are sent to us to try and help us see another path we should follow, look for different options, seek better or new opportunities.

I am a teacher. I am a substitute teacher to be exact. There are special challenges to be met in that sort of job. I don't know what is happening to young people today. Our young people are mean hearted and cruel to eachother and the adults in their lives. Sad but true. When I was in a long term sub position, I had troubles, and failings, none of us are perfect, but there are also times that I was a success and those were the best times and they were the most frequent times. But now that I am back in per diem work, I find that those moments of victory are far and few in between and i have made the decision to find other work.

Maybe some of my troubles are my own fault. I think maybe they are. But much of my troubles also stem from the fact that so many of my colleagues are indifferent to others and care only for their own securities and dislike any dissenters. At any rate, after so many years of pass and fail and worries and stress, I have decided to leave the situation as soon as I find more permanent work, outside of the educational system.

But what do we do when we are faced with life changing situations? Should we race to magik and try to heal ourselves with spells and incantations? Should we mix up potions and bless our homes and selves. Should we consider revenge spells?

I know you will be tempted to do all of these things but I suggest that you take some time and pray first. Ask for guidance and comfort and even forgiveness. Forgiveness for yourself, forgiveness for others and forgiveness to others. Prayer is the most ancient form of spelling and that is what you should do first.

Then you might want cleanse yourself and your personal space and cast charms that calm and ease you. Be proactive and turn back negativity with a protective shield. Call upon your sacred spirit and find peace from them.

I wish to thank my sister and my boyfriend Gaelyn and my parents for standing by me and for showing me support and compassion. I would also like to thank my Craft friends, my brother and sister witches who have shone their support.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Remember, Holocaust is just a fancy way of saying Burning Times

Merry Meet!

I know that those who are civically minded will want to know this is happening. Copy and paste this on an email and sent it to your friends. Don't let the burning times happen again.

EISENHOWER IN DACHAU

It is a matter of history that when Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces, General Dwight Eisenhower, found the victims of the death camps, he ordered all possible photographs to be taken, and for the German people from surrounding villages to be ushered through the camps and even made to bury the dead..

He did this because he said in words to this effect: 'Get it all on record now - get the films - get the witnesses - because somewhere down the track of history some bastard will get up and say that this never happened.

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil, is for good men to do nothing'.

This week, a school in Great Britain/United Kingdom removed The Holocaust from its school curriculum because it 'offended' the Muslim population which claims it never occurred.

This is a frightening portent of the fear that is gripping the world and how easily each country is giving into it.

It is now more than 60 years after the Second World War in Europe ended.

This e-mail is being sent as a memorial chain, in memory of the 6 million Jews, 20 million Russians, 10 million Christians and 1,900 Catholic priests who were murdered, massacred, raped, burned, starved and humiliated with the German and Russian peoples looking the other way!

Now, more than ever, with Iran, among others, claiming the Holocaust to be 'a myth,' it is imperative to make sure the world never forgets.

This e-mail is intended to reach 40 million people worldwide! Be a link in the memorial chain and help distribute this around the world.

Don't just delete this. It will only take a minute to pass this along.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn Dhan

A Little Call of the Elements

Merry Meet!

If there are any witches out there who are looking for a call of the elements or are looking for a new one, check this one out. It is from Tanith LunaCrevan and she is one of our newest sisters in the Christian Craft community. Thank you Tanith for your permission to share this sweet little invocation.

Elemental Call-

To the East, I call upon Raphael,
Lord of the Air,
Healer of the Earth.
To the South, I call upon Michael,
Lord of Fire,
Defender of Man, Slayer of evil.
To the West, I call upon Gabriel,
Lord of Water,
Messenger of God, Harbringer of the Divine.
To the North I call upon Uriel,
Lord of Earth,
Angel of Death and spiritual renewal.

Air, Fire, Water ,Earth,
Elements of celestial birth,
Raphael, Michael, Gabriel, Uriel,
Lords of heaven, joy and myrrth,
Join me in this Sacred Circle,
Protected from all blast,
Built to last,
Aid me in this spell I cast.

Bless me as I weave this charm,
Keep me from all pain and harm,
Help me follow the Three Fold Law,
Send me forgiveness for sin's fatal flaw.

As I will it, As God wills it, so mote it be.

Brightest Blessings Be and thanks again to Tanith,
Aslinn

Additional Links

There seems to be some brand of trouble with the links element so I will do links here:

http://www.witches-tutorial.com/paths/cw.html

This is an interesting page, very straightforward, seems exclusive to Christian centered Witchcraft rather than Goddess Christian tradition.

http://www.geocities.com/tragicpixie/ChristianCraft.html

This interesting Saint magik....a bit on the gypsy/voudou side but good directions for the first time Christian Crafter.

http://www.foxygoddess.com/cwc/index.htm

Not all the links work but most of them do. An excellent directory to the Christian witch movement

http://arganteswell.tripod.com/id1.html

Pretty good website, deals with Christian Gnosticism primarily but full of interesting stuff

http://www.wicca.com/celtic/wicca/christian.htm

Many of you have probably seen this essay, but like they used to say in old Universal movies "A good cast is worth repeating"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A5407021

Excellent article acknowledging Christian Witchcrafts existance and explanation of the movement.



http://p075.ezboard.com/CAN-A-PERSON-BE-BOTH-A-CHRISTIAN-AND-A-WICCAN/fingodsimageaplaceforchristianpaganwomenfrm10.showMessage?topicID=4.topic
Good discussion group for Christo-Pagan women. My Gaelyn hipped me to this one. Thanks my old goat:P

http://www.thesistersthree.com/forums/showthread.ts3?threadid=3985

This a website very inspired by Charmed, but that is okay and my appeal to young women who are new to the Craft. Christian Craft oriented.

If anyone come across any other Christian Centered Witchcraft sites, let me know and I will check them out and paste them up...

Thanks bunches to the little witches (Pansy Faerieflower and Jacob Dragonheart and Little Rabbit) who found these on the web and emailed them to me.

Blessed Be
Aslinn

Who are Satanists?

Merry Meet,

I planned to put this essay in my Christian Almanac blog but I think it is time to talk about this topic. As I told a young witch the other day, I wish I had a nickel for every time someone asked me if I worshipped the devil. If I had that money I could build myself a magik school.

Satanists are folks who believe in the notion that they will not live in the confines of the Christian religion. They believe that it is wrong for people to fight off their natural urges for pleasure and that it is natural to be self serving. Satanists do not even believe in a true personage called Satan. Satan, they say is a construct where they focus their mental and physical and magikal energies. He represents the natural struggle against control. But he is not real.

The first records of a true Satanic church come from Europe. Now, I ignore the fact that many covens were called Satanic, because as we all know, witches are not Satanists. They worship the gods and goddesses of nature, not the Christian devil. These first Satan centered churches were known as The Hell Fire Club for some. Rabelais spoke of a Satan Cult as the Abbey of Thelema, which inspired Aliester Crowley.

The first modern Satanic Church was started by hypnotist Anton Sandazor Levay. He had a circus and sideshow background and knew how to create an audience. When he formed his church, he carried out bizarre "rituals" for the tv cameras and dressed in a Devil costume, complete with horns. His black house still stands in San Francisco and is a landmark, though it has from time to time been abandoned and in disrepair.

What interests me is that there are people who foam at the mouth, howl at the moon and have fits over the devil and attribute to him all of these fantastic powers. When the truth of the matter is, he is impotent and has only the power we give him. Witches of the Wiccan/ Pagan tradition do not believe in the Christian Devil, so there is no way to empower him in this way. Christians who practice Witchcraft are not worshippers of the devil because we dedicate all we do to the good of God's kingdom on earth.

So, please stop asking me if I worship the devil, because I don't. (Now I've done it, I've probably messed up my chances for collecting more nickles for my magik school :() And don't harass my Wiccan/Pagan brothers and sisters because they do not worship the devil either. And stop giving the devil powers he never had. He has enough PR as it is with the Exorcist.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Nature, Magik and the Christian God

Merry Meet!

So many people talk about the ecology now what with global warming on the forefront and more emphasis on removing so much fossil fuels from our environment which makes us virtual slaves to oil producing countries. Politically and environmentally, it is best that we do search out alternative methods of fueling our cars and homes of efficiently and cleanly recycling plastics like this computer or the plastic bottles we drink from and the packaging on our food.

I remember there was a program on television hosted by William Shatner called the Gaia Project. It extends the various world myths of Mother Earth or Mother Nature and the idea that she is dying because her children were killing her with emissions and the green house effect and with toxins polluting every one of her elements. This program was decried by Christian fundamentalists who said that environmentalists were pagans in disguise trying to "convert" people to the notion there was no heaven and that this earth was all there was and that we must worship the earth instead of God.

The Gaia Project died a death, to say the least and we could have cared less when gas was just a dollar and a half a gallon. Environmental issues were the mainstay of old hippies, tree huggers and pagans of all stripe. And to be honest, I never gave it much thought until a strange thing nearly happened in our state.

The state I live in is very poor. Walmart is her biggest employer. But I was married and my Husband was still alive and we were renting a little house with a couple of trees on the lot. One day, our Land lady came to us and said that she may have to cut our trees down. I asked why. In the news paper there was an article that the governor was proposing a bill that said people who had trees on their property would have to pay a tax per tree. The proposal was very vague and seemed ridiculous to me when a tax assessor came by about six months later to count the trees on the property. I told him we rented the house and pointed to my land lord's house.

A week or so later, my husband I were watching the news and we saw where the Buddhists in Vietnam and Laos were ordaining the trees as Buddhists monks to prevent them from being cut down. I told my husband that he, since he was Buddhist, should ordain those trees out in the yard because then they would become a tax free 501c3, a church or member of clergy. The next day I mentioned it to my landlord and she at first laughed and then she said, "Can he really do that? Can he ordain the trees?" We didn't see why not. Fortunately for my landlord and the trees our state government decided not to tax the trees.

Christians believe there is no reason for us to try to preserve the earth because there will be a great tribulation and the world will be burned away anyway to make place for the new earth. I believe in the end times myself but I also believe we have an obligation to God that he gave us in the beginning. Man was place in the garden to tend it, to be a husbandman and this spouse was his help meet. Just because we believe in a new heaven and earth does not mean we should abdicate our job here on earth.

St. Francis of Assisi was a Christian mystic and naturalist and he wrote this poem in praise of God within nature.

Most high omnipotent good Lord.
All praise, glory honor and blessings are yours.
To you alone, Most High, do they belong.
And no man is worthy to pronounce your name
Be praised Oh Lord, with all your creatures
Especially Sir Brother Sun, who brings the day and give us light through him.
How handsome, how radiant he is with great splendor
Of you, Most High, he bears your likeness
Be praised , My Lord, for Sister Moon and the stars.
In the Heavens you have formed them, bright, precious and beautiful.
Be praised, My Lord, for Brother Wind and for air, for cloud, for all weather
By which you give your creatures nourishment.
Be praised My Lord, for Sister Water, she is useful, humble, precious and pure.
Be praised my Lord for Brother Fire, by whom you light the night
How handsome, happy and powerful and strong
Be praised my Lord for our Sister, Mother Earth
Who nourishes and governs us and produces the flowers and fruits herbs.
Praise and Bless the Lord and give thanks and serve him with all humility.

So Mote it be

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn and Gaelyn

Magikal Colors

Merry Meet!

One of the simplest ways we work magik is the wearing of colors. We know through research that color effects us emotionally and spiritually. One of the things that people who are Catholic or Anglican/Episcopalian is the change in colors with the various parts of the church calendar. For example, the colors predominately in our church now is purple. On Good Friday, a catafalque will be draped with black cloth. On Easter everything will be white.

So what about color in magik? First of all, take a piece of paper and make a list of the primary colors. Think about what they symbolize to you.Your attitude about color may be affected by culture or taboos.

From a western witchcraft perspective, the colors are thus:

Color****** Energy****************** Magikal use

Red***** Stimulant******** Sexual excitement, Courage, blood illness
Orange** Cheering *********Depression, mental illness, rheumatism
Yellow** Inspiration****** Detox, Hormones, Menstrual problems
Green*** Vibrant,Harmony** Antiseptic, balancing, money troubles
Blue**** Calm************* Insomnia, nerves, reflection
Purple** Leadership******* Self Respect, courage, protection
Black*** the Occult******* Protection, discipline, binding
White*** Reflection******* Purity, initiation, curing, release
Gold**** divinity********* supplications, gratitudes
Silver** Magik/Moon****** Emotional balance and strengthening powers


These are just a few and they be different from tradition to tradition. When you work spells you should try to use colors that correspond with the need or the person invoked. For example, if you invoke God, you should burn a gold candle. For Christ, you should use a gold or a purple or both if you desire. For the intercession of Mary, you might use white or blue or silver.

Some candles are tough to find, like black candles. You can sub them with either very dark blue or brown candles or with white candles. With Halloween becoming an even bigger decorating holiday that ever before, I stock up on these little black tea lights.

But think about color as you work your rituals and spells

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

When your coven hives off

Merry Meet!

There are those times when you slap yourself on the forehead and wished you'd paid a bit more attention to the "Run Your Coven" chapters of all those Craft books that solitaries usually skip. Gaelyn and I never meant to have a coven, we just thought a few witches of various traditions would want to get together to chant the corners, do some spelling and have cakes and ale a couple of times a month. We didn't realize we were running the Coven of Eclectic Misfits with a handful of couples and one lonely person who was testing the waters.

Gaelyn and I were getting together with two other Christo-Pagan couples. One was a mixed relationship sort of like Gaelyn and me, he was a Christian Mystic but not a witch and she was a Christo-Pagan. The other couple were both Christo- Pagans. They brought the lone person in to observe and participate in our discussion group. The other four couples were Wiccans. But they knew we were primarily interested in blending Christianity and Paganism and would always include Christian worship in our rituals. At first they seemed fine with it.

Then there were a couple times when Gaelyn and I couldn't join the group because Gaelyn's beloved Grandfather passed away and we were splitting our time between here and there. When we were away, Christian segments of worship were ignored, even to the detriment of the Christo-pagans in the group. When we returned and were able to get back to our routines, there was a request that we remove the Christian portions of our rituals for private practice and perform only the Pagan/Wiccan portions of the worship since I would be the only one completely excluded.

Of course my old goat refused. It didn't matter to me, group ritual seemed more important to him than it did to me, anyway. But now, there has been a split and the circle has hived off. But not without bad feelings and that troubles me. So, I want to say in this blog that I am sorry to those who wanted to exclude me and I am sorry to my Gaelyn for being the root of aggrivation and to the lovely ChristoPagan pairs and the one lone observer for the upheaval.

What had been a lovely, lively group is now a little sad and I hate to think that there are bad feelings. But for the circle to work, we must work together and appreciate the energies that we bring with our uniqueness. We lost, all of us, by losing each other.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Women and the Church: Is there a women's priesthood?

Merry Meet!!

As many of you who read my blog know, I am a Catholic, and while I write this I will be thinking in terms of the Catholic Church. This should not make any of you feel slighted because I know there are many churches who would not allow female priests. Not in the ordinary, anyway.

Women have a unique and sometimes problematic relationship with the Church. They are like Janus with his two faces; dual sided entities, the two faces of the same sexual coin. Woman is both Whore of the Devil(Eve) and Mother of God(Mary). Some of the apostles loved women, some admittedly did not. But I never thought of women's relationship to God as a popularity race and I never thought Jesus ever said anything to exclude the woman from her own priesthood.

The hearth was the center of the home for many millenia. It was where the family could find warmth, food, a face with softness to see into them and know what they needed. Here, the early Christian, particularly in the early days of the Church under persecution, would find the woman of the house cooking up a little unleavened bread, roasting a little meat and stirring a little soup. Before the meal, she would take the crisp little bread and a cup of wine, or maybe even water and sit it by her husband's place and he would say "This is the body of Christ";"This is his Blood" and the family would remember the Eucharist with each other. But what if she was alone? What if it was just her and her little kids? What if she was all alone?

Then she would take the bread in her hand and give God thanks and praise and break it and give it to her children and tell them to remember Jesus who gave up his life for them and she would do the same with the cup. Any Christian who does not feel empowered to remember Christ in the breaking of bread needs to examine their relationship with Christ. Not the Church. I love my Church, I would die for my Church, but I know that the Church is a human construct.But your relationship with God. Just as I am empowered by my sisterhood with Christ as I am an adopted Child under the contract of blood Jesus shed for me, so I may celebrate in the most profound symbols of Christ's sacrifice. It is not something for women to fight over and screech like scalded cats about. It is something for them to do when the time has come when gathering in houses of worship will be dangerous and the home becomes God's kingdom on earth and the hearth once again becomes the altar. That time has not yet come, but it may be in the future.

Ironic though, the hearth is also the place of worship and Craft for the witch.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

A Great Article

Merry Meet!

One of the things that I enjoy about my studies in the Craft are the yearly almanacs. I love them. They are always so topical and have the greatest articles. One of them I just have to share and write about. It is in the "2008 Witches' Companion" published by Llewellyn. It is written by Elizabeth Barrett. I'm not going to type the whole thing here but it talks about what she calls "Granola Wicca" the nuts, flakes and fruits of Wicca. Now, there are these same people in all religions, believe me, I've belonged to more than my fair share of churches and youth groups and Bible studies. And after reading so many books by very serious witches who would not dare admit to these people, this was a breath of fresh air.

Barrett basically talks about the personalities one might find in a coven or even a goodish size medieval fair and since I go to the latter about every year, and am preparing to go this year, reading this article really excited me. Because I have met some or all of these people, such as:

The Hex Master- don't piss off this dude or he'll change you into a toad....you know this guy, he acts like a demon who has escaped from the set of Charmed.

Pan's Man- He's got all his natural attributes hung out for everyone to see....My old goat will be keeping an eye out for him.

Then, there is my personal favorite, the "Womin" witches who declare any man as subordinate sperm donors not worthy to join in their full moon crotch shaving rituals.

I'm not making fun of thes folks, really, well...maybe I am but it is only because I know these people in another plane of existance in the traditional Christian side. For example, the Hex Master could be:

Damn them all Dan, these are the big guys who work out all of the time, is usually a police officer or prison guard who believes that Jesus just needed to apply a little more of that tough love he showed the money changers. He's the one who would happily wollop the sin out of you.

Pan's man could easily be: "Youth Group Justin", the girls go gaga over him, ignore his beautiful girlfriend he has dated since he was three and get "saved" every three weeks or so so that they can cry in his arms and confess just how naughty they are. Of course old "Youth Group" never tries to avoid the situation. He just keeps 'em coming back for more.

And then, representing the "Womin" there is the "Preacher's Wife". She might also be known as the youth pastor's wife. It doesn't really matter because they are all the same woman. They are mousy and tired and have had so many kids they can't keep track of them. She's the one whose name you can't remember when you talk about your reival experience years later.

On the flip side, there is "Save it for Marriage Sally" she runs the teen girls youth group. She talks about love and romance and saving your virginity til marriage. She sings "I don't know how to love Him" from Jesus Christ Superstar and "Kumbaya". She generally falls from grace for about six or eight weeks after having a passionate episode with "Youth Group Justin" but both reappear at another church, at another retreat near you.

And this is just in Protestant circles. These people show up in Catholic circles too.

There's The Reverend Father. He was at The Last Supper, met Satan personally, and generally thinks none of us is worth saving and longs for the days when the priest was not just your confessor but your inquisitor. He'd sleep in a coffin, like medieval monks did and go bare foot in the winter if he could. He's a priest's priest.

Then there is Father What a Waste. He's the handsome, breathlessly virile, hopelessly chaste priest in your parish. All the women fuss over him. All the men would like to smack a little of the cute off him and tend to like going to Reverend Father's Masses. They tell the wives it is so they won't miss the big game with Notre Dame.

Then there is the Priest Hag. She's the one who loves all priests inordinately. In fact her husband even wrote the dioceses asking that the priest, especially if he is a Father What a Waste, is censured. In reality, she would priest hag anything in a white collar.

So what does all of this mean? I don't know, except that maybe it reveals the truth that all of us, regardless of our faiths or Craft traditions have similar experiences. Maybe it shows that none of us have the right to pick on another's religious group because shake most of our religious trees and the nuts will fall out.

But, if you get a chance, read the article in the 2008 almanac companion. It's funny.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

DON'T LET THE BURNING TIMES HAPPEN AGAIN!!!!!!!

Merry Meet!

The Saudi government is seeking the death penalty against a woman accused of witchcraft. She was forced to place her thumbprint on a document she could not read nor understand. Witchcraft is considered a crime against Islam. Copy and past this link to your browser http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23162712 and check out the story. Don't let this happen to another person. If it can happen to her, it can happen to you.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn Dhan

Wands

Merry Meet!

My wand is made of cedar, which harkens back to my Cherokee ancestory because the Cherokee considered the cedar sacred. It is said that a great giant was killed and his head hung in a great tree and the blood turned the tree red and stained it with magic and from the tree the wise ones of the tribe learned all of the sacred songs and spells. I treated the wood with tung oil and wound tourquoise and silver beads with copper wire around the ends and in a criss cross pattern up its 15 inch length.

Of course I know that I cannot say "Expelliarmus" and have things fly out of someone's hand but it is magical. It feels like it is an extension of me. But I have to tell you that my very first wand was an eighteen inch piece of dowling. I got it and I lightly sanded it and I painted creeping vines around it and decupaged crosses, pentangles, and a tiny medal of the Blessed Virgin and there were four angels decoupaged all around the bottom of the wand where I held it and large quartz bead from a hobby shop. It took me many days to make it and I even sanded everything off and redid it when I was not satisfied. I used it for years and then a circle sister gave me this cedar wand and I put my old one away. I take it out and think about when I made the wand and what was happening in my life. The little symbol of the Buddha representing my husband. The tiny picture of a rose decoupaged near it for my step daughter, both now dead. A small picture of my college mascot (A buffalo...Go Herd!!!) A picture of my brother-in-law who is no longer a part of our family. The wand tells my story.

So, the thing I am trying to tell you is that whatever you create to do magik with, you should make it personal to yourself and what you do and what you believe in and who you care for. The materials are really unimportant if you take the time to make it a part of you. It is great to have a wand of cedar that looks like it could do "Expelliarmus" but a wonderful wand can be a simple piece of wooden dowling. It is just as magikal.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Sexual Identity and the Craft

Merry Meet!

There are so many diverse people in the world today and there has never been such openess. This is true of the Craft. In the old days of the Craft, there were thoughts that gay folk could not perform magik because they could not raise the magikal energy in the Great Rite and there was imbalance in the energy because there were two of the same sex and not one of each, representing both god and goddess.

This was of course in the early years of the Craft and that is cahanging. There is a quote that many gay witches use that all love is from the goddess. This means that the sacred spirit embraces the energy from all acts of love, regardless of the orientation. Even those who have little or no sexual identity or who are single/celibate.

There are people out there, myself included, who identifies themself as Asexual. When I thought about myself as a sexual person, I thought of myself as non-sexual. Then I heard the expression asexual identity. I had heard the expression in biology but thought it applied to protozoan not to people, but, apparently there is a growing group of people who do not see other people in a sexual way who do not consider sexual activity with other people as very important and cannot relate to people as sexual creatures. We acknowledge physical attractiveness and desire relationships with others, including love relationships but not neccessarily sexual relationships.

My boyfriend, the old goat, learned of my asexuality early on. I was very upfront with him. But I also told him I was interested in experiencing the great rite with him. And he and I performed the great rite. This was a wonderful ritual but not in the way that I suspect that many people see it.

So can I be a witch and have no real sexual identity, no sexual nature? I think so. Because in the Bible there is a passage in Matthew, chapter 19 verse 12 "For there are some who are eunuchs which are born from their mother's womb, and there are some eunuchs which are made eunuchs of men and there be eunuchs who make themselves eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven's sake. He who is able to receive it, let him receive it."

I know that eunuch is not really the right word for what I am, but is the closest the Bible comes. And as with all things, there will be some who see it differently but for me, this verse acknowledeges people who may be like me and may be like me in that I consider it a part of my Craft work for the Kingdom of Heaven.

So, do not segregate people of other sexualities from your circles and covens. They are children of the sacred spirit and a part of the circle.

Brightest Blessings Be,
Aslinn Dhan Dragonhawk

Determination of Life, Christianity and the Craft

Merry Meet,

I have been checking out the news on the net and noticed that it will soon be the 35th anniversary of the Roe V Wade decision legalizing abortion.

It is a controversial subject. I suppose that from the beginning of time, there were women who felt slaves to their bodies because they were unable to limit the number of pregnancies they would have. Of course we all know that the only sure way there would be no births was to be celibate unless you wished to increase your family size. Of course men also dictated when and how often sex was to occur. Women died like flies from being "bred out" and it was not uncommon for men to have three or four wives as each successive wife died in child birth. I believe that St. Joseph, the foster father of Jesus and the spouse of Mary was likely a widower, which explains the reference to Jesus' brothers and sisters (I won't get into the Protestant argument against the perpetual sexual virginity of Mary at this time).

As humans became more sophisticated, there was some thought of how to keep women from being pregnant. Cleopatra was known to use a contraceptive sponge dipped in vinegar which kept her from getting pregnant until, presumably, it worked in her favor to become pregnant. Later, mid wives learned how to prescribe herbs for baths and teas that would prevent pregnancy or induce an abortion early in the pregnancy. Manual abortions appear later in Midwifery and are always more dangerous. And though there are many who would deny it, there were infanticides performed by Midwives. They smothered or strangled babies or pierced their temples with long needles and the babies would die.

Why did women have to go through this? Primarily because there was little in the way of choice. Women were the chattel of fathers, brothers and husbands. And this is long before the coming of the Judeo- Christian Church. Even among aboriginal tribes of North America, we know the culture was dominated by men, as in Asian cultures, Norse cultures, Celtic cultures and Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cultures.

And the Catholic Church is not the only Christian church to ban the use of contraceptives. Many primitive Protestant and orthodox Jewish sects either prohibit or curtail the use of birth control.

As a Catholic, I wrestle with the issue of Abortion. There is a part of me who disagrees with it as an on demand medical practice namely because I believe in Birth Control, unlike many Catholic people and the Catholic hierarchy. I recall a Catholic priest I knew that said: "Anyone Catholic against Birth Control has never worked in an African mission."

But there is a part of me that would hate to see a day when a woman cannot make a decision to terminate a pregnancy she finds untenable for whatever reason. I don't think any woman should use Abortion as Birth Control, but I think every woman should be able to make a choice and I don't think any man, whether it be a father, brother, husband or lover has the right to make that choice either.

As a Christian, I believe in Birth Control and limited abortion on demand, but as a Christian I think we must start making decisions to take responsibility for ourselves. If you are out there living a promiscuous life (and only you can determine whether you are or not)you may want to decide whether or not children will ever be a factor in your life. If you know they won't, do something permanent about it. Have a surgical procedure to prevent you from ever becoming pregnant. It is easy, simple and effective and if you don't have the money, your family planning clinic can help you by getting the procedure free of charge. And if they turn down your request you have the right to appeal the decision.

But what about the Craft? What about the aspects of fertility and growth and maternal earth? Can you be a good witch and be in balance if you don't procreate within yourself? Some say that you can't. Many say that you can, that creation is about more than being a baby factory , that you can still nurture and grow things and people and help people become whoever they want to be by being a mentor, a teacher/tutor, an advocate or just a good listener to a young person. You can be a helper to that young couple who has a couple of children and a couple of jobs and not a lot of down time by volunteering to babysit for free a couple of times a month. You can donate time to a local school to tutor kids. You can volunteer at your Church or coven group to organize a sports team or an arts and crafts group or even a reading circle at the local library.

Though I am not a mother, and cannot be a mother, I know I can contribute to the lives of children and other people. I also know that sometimes, despite the best laid plans of mice and men, we have things that happen to us beyond our control. I know too, there are ways to try to avoid the worst case scenario. But above all, I know that no woman should be forced to be pregnant when she does not want to be and I know that no man has the right to make those decisions for her. And I know that though I don't believe in abortion as birth control, I further know that we must preserve a woman's right to chose.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn Dhan Dragonhawk

Which Bible for the Christian Witch?

Merry Meet!

The Bible is full of esoteric knowledge, including herbals and rituals and affirmations but what Bible should you use? Should you use the King James Version? The Catholic Version? Which Edition? Translation? What about the Gnostic Gospels? While no one edition, translation or version may be the right one, or the whole one, we must all begin somewhere.

I was brought up a Protestant so all of my experiences were of the KJV Bible. When I became Catholic in later life, and was going through my conversion process, I demanded that the priest defend the doctrine of the Catholic Church with the KJV translation of the Bible. Later, after I was a Catholic, I read the books that made the Catholic version different from the KJV.

Catholics include in their Bible Deuterocanonicals, also known as Apocryphal books by the Protestant Church. These books include I and II Macabees, The Book of Wisdom, I and II Esdras, Sirach and Baruch and Tobit. They imparted critical cultural practices of the Jews and told teaching stories and recorded historical events in the lives of the early Jews. These books were written in Greek and were a part of the Greek Septuagint. These Greek texts were not only known by the Jews but to many tribes of Gentile people who loved and respected the wisdom contained here.

They were orginally included in the King James Version of the Bible as the apocrypha, non canonical but a part of Biblical history. It was not until England's increasing tension with Catholics in Ireland the apocryphal books were removed.

If you want a good edition of the Bible with an extensive and non denominational historical overview of the organization and translation of the Bible with the Apocryphal books of the Bible included, get the Oxford edition of the Bible. It is wonderful and very denomination neutral.

As for the Gnostic Gospels and or the Lost Books of the Bible, I have no problem with reading them as well as books like the Book of Mormon for a sense of scriptural fullness and wider view of how the Bible influenced or is influenced by these collections.

I also recommend the reading of the Talmud and the Koran. No scholar of the Bible can ignore the interconnection of these books and faiths with one another.

If you are a witch, keep a notebook devoted to Biblical Craft knowledge. One of these days, I will get my notes togther and put them here on my blog.

Until next time,

Brightest Blessings Be

Aslinn Dhan Dragonhawk

A Book Recommendation for the Christian Witch

Merry Meet!

So often we Christian witches are confronted in our studies by Craft books that are Wiccan/Pagan centric and are even quite intolerant of witches of other traditions and practices. And really, I do understand how they feel and I hope in the future we can bridge that gap. I have found a wonderful book called Power Spellcraft For Life and it is written by Arin Murphy Hiscock and it is published by Provenance Press and it goes for $10.95. Much of it is for the beginner, but if you are a Christian Witch or a Christian Wiccan or Christo-Pagan and you have felt self conscious about writing spells, adapting spells to suit your religious beliefs, or if you are beginning the path, this book is for you.

Arin is a High Priestess with the Black Forrest clan and she understands and embraces the notion there are witches from non- Wiccan, non-Pagan backgrounds who need guidance and help understanding the element of spell working, casting and writing. As I read her book, I made note of my approach to Spelling and how it compares to what she advocates and it appears that I am dead on and I have intuitively drawn upon my own sense of witchcraft.

So, if you are out there struggling and you need a little guidance, even if you have been practicing for years or just beginning your oddessy into the Craft, this book is for you.

Until next time,
Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn Dhan Dragonhawk

The Witches Book of Shadows

Merry Meet!

When I first got my computer, I learned rather quickly that I loved to do graphic pages with it, using pictures and different types of font but I always drew the line when it came to my Book of Shadows because witchcraft is so much about being traditional. But now, in my old age, I have begun transcribing my BOS into my computer and I love the way it is coming together.

After many years of collecting JPEGS and clip art, I have begun to create my BOS as I always wanted it to look. I have Learned how to bind books and how to make covers for them and I have discovered a penchant for the unusual and the bizarre.

While I still advocate the writing of your first BOS by hand, so that you get a feel for writing the rituals you will do and the spells you feel the most intimate with, I encourage those of us who have the technology and the wherwithal to transcribe your BOS into the computer and have fun with the images you have in your print shops or photoshop or collected JPEGs. Buy beautiful paper to print it on and learn to do your own bindings. And by all means, have fun and create the beautiful BOS you always wished you had.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn

Witch Abuse: When friends take advantage

Merry Meet!

We have all been through it. We have a circle of friends that you relate to and you share with them that you practice the Craft and suddenly, everyday you have someone who wants "spiritual" advice in the form of tarot readings or other Craft work. And though you spend a lot of time and effort and energy to work for them and give them advice, they do not follow it or they completely ignore your advice and end up coming to you oer and over again. What should you do?

One of the things that you can do is expalin that you cannot help them if they are not willing to take your advice. You can also tell them that Craft work done on their behalf is defeated if they are not willing to work with the energies you have made on their behalf. If they work against it their situation will not improve.

Finally, you may simply have to tell them that you can no longer help them. Be compassionate but firm. Tell them why you can no longer help them. They may be mad at you but if they are true friends they will accept what you have said to them and recocile with you. If they don't they may have been those pesky psychic vampires we witches spaek of from time to time.

If you are ending a therapeutic relationship, it may be important for you to recharge your energies and rid yourself of spiritual debris. Take a ritual bath, cleanse your sacred space, and do a healing ritual for yourself. Remember, the rede includes yourself, too.

Brightest Blessings Be,

Aslinn Dhan Dragonhawk

Happy New Year

Merry Meet!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful Yule and enjoyed being with families friends and loved ones. I hope eveyone took some time out to thank their Sacred Spirits and practice some aspect of their Craft.

I just thought that I would let you know that I am doing some reading on Maragret Murray. She is quite controversial in the Craft community. I have begun my readings on her and will give you my humble opinion forthwith. I am also very interested in hearing from others and getting their meaningful, well thought out opinions.

Brightest Blessings Be
Aslinn Dhan Dragonhawk