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Time to Hit the Books
Late August not only means that summer is drawing to a hot, lazy close, but that millions of students will be heading back to school soon. I recently read a shocking statistic - that 58% of the US adult population never reads another book after high school. Worse, 42% of college graduates never read another book [after college] (according to Jerrold Jenkins, CEO and Chairman of Jenkins Group, Inc.).Does learning really end once you finish your formal education? For some of us, the answer is a resounding no. Our thirst to learn new things - skills and ideas that may help at home, spiritually, with our relationships, or in our very evolution - drives us to scan bookshelves and the internet for titles that reflect something we'd like to develop in ourselves. Continuing education is year-round if you never stop reading books! So let's celebrate September by getting a little bookwormish, shall we? Just out this month, we have the massive tome RitualCraft by Amber K and Azrael Arynn K which runs more than 600 pages. It would be easy to describe this as a "back to witch-school" textbook - just when you thought you had ritual down (and who does, anyway?), here comes a great book that looks at every conceivable detail of the ritual process. It's not a book of rituals, but a book to teach you how to craft your own rituals and make them amazing. From celebrations for large groups or families to rites of passage and personal transformation, you'll look at everything from costumes and music to speech and timing. On the lighter side, we also have Elemental Witch by Tammy Sullivan this month. This book focuses more on learning about yourself; which element do you have the greatest affinity with? How can you work magic with that element? Which deities will be best to call upon for assistance? When people talk about getting back to the basics, this is it - getting right back to the four elements of Fire, Air, Water and Earth. Then in September watch for MindLight by Silver RavenWolf where you'll learn the secrets of real manifestation using the super-quantum field, and The Mystic Foundation by Christopher Penczak, a solid primer on many different mystical paths you can choose - told from a rather witchy perspective, as usual! If you need more structure in your continued path of learning than just reading books on your own, here is a great resource for advanced Pagan training - The Cherry Hill Seminary (CHS). These wonderful folks, boasting an impressive faculty list, are there to help High Priests and Priestesses take the next step in really serving their communities. Just because someone is a priest/ess doesn't mean that they are prepared to preside over weddings and funerals, counsel people with addiction problems, comfort the dying and the bereaved, defend Pagan rights in schools or in the workplace, or speak confidently with the media about their community. Here is where CHS aims to help. You can take courses of interest only, or work toward completing their programs in Pastoral Counseling or Public Ministry. Visit them at cherryhillseminary.org before the Fall Semester starts (the week of September 11, 2006) for easy online registration. One more thing I want to mention - we have been honored to win several COVR (Coalition of Visionary Resources) Awards again this year. Sons of the Goddess by Christopher Penczak tied for Book of the Year and also won in the Wiccan/Paganism category. Penczak also won the Magick/Shamanism category with his book The Temple of Shamanic Witchcraft. And there was a tie in the category of Visionary Fiction - The Quickening by Ly de Angeles and Magick in the West End by Kala Trobe. To celebrate, we are giving you a Witchy Update discount on these titles. Have a wonderful fall, and don't ever give up on improving your mind and learning new tricks!
—Elysia Gallo
An excerpt from the article
When I got involved in Wicca, I found that most of my teachers emphasized the Goddess. Many people have been raised with traditions that emphasized the male aspect of divinity. These same people often come to nature-based religions with a desire to reconnect their spirit to the divine feminine, the Mother principle. I know I did. I came from a strict Catholic background, so I found the idea of the Goddess both intriguing and comforting. I always liked the Virgin Mary, and found the multifaceted images of the Goddess quite a wonderful challenge. It was hard to look at the feminine as not only virgin mother, but also sexual mother, warrior, crone, witch, healer, and reaper. Though it was a challenge, I found building a relationship with the God to be an altogether a different experience. |
Great Books on Sale through
September 7! Click for a complete list of sale items  Sons of the Goddess By Christopher Penczak ISBN: 0-7387-0547-0 Price:  The Temple of Shamanic Witchcraft By Christopher Penczak ISBN: 0-7387-0767-8 Price:  The Quickening By Ly de Angeles ISBN: 0-7387-0664-7 Price:  Magick in the West End By Kala Trobe ISBN: 0-7387-0779-1 Price:  Autumn Equinox By Ellen Dugan ISBN: 0-7387-0624-8 Price:  A Witch's Notebook By Silver RavenWolf ISBN: 0-7387-0662-0 Price: |
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An excerpt from Elemental Witch
by Tammy Sullivan
There are many clues in our daily lives that can serve to reveal to us any elemental affinities we may already have. We need only to look closely at ourselves and our situations to find them.
Our health and any related problems can offer insight into our elemental affinities. The Greeks based their medical system on the four elements. Hippocrates' theory was so sound that much of it is still in use today. His influence on medicine has lasted throughout the ages, as all doctors still take the Hippocratic oath. In ancient Greek medicine, each element corresponded to a bodily fluid, called a humour. It was thought that all diseases were caused by an imbalance of the elements in the patient. We can use Hippocrates' ideas to determine if an imbalance is present within us. For instance, I am an Air Witch with liver problems. This directly corresponds with the ancient belief that air rules the liver. A little research into this subject may be very revealing about what predominant element lives within you. The ancient Cherokees based their system of natural medicine around the elements as well. Each plant corresponded to a specific direction, and the direction specified what type of medicine the plant was to be used for. The goal was to create and maintain a balance to ward off sickness. According to the Cherokee medicine system, the direction of east corresponded to the element of fire and was related to family, fertility, and emotions. The direction of west corresponded to water and was used in matters of internal medicine. The direction of north corresponded to the element of air and was used in matters related to mental conditions and colds and airborne sicknesses. The direction of south corresponded to earth and was used in matters involving cuts, bruises, and external hurts. Which element are you? You can gain insight into your personal elemental affinities by asking yourself questions that cover a wide range of topics. Ask yourself many simple questions. Think of it as peeling an onion. Layer by layer you slowly reveal your core. Revealing spells have their purposes, like when it comes to remembering things we may have chosen to forget, but when it comes to determining something as deeply ingrained as an elemental affinity, you must peel, peel, and peel. If you write your answers on a single sheet of paper, one element will often appear many times. Here is a list of questions to consider: |
Cool Links
Likely the best and most useful site for witches and pagans around
Music for the Pagan soul; download it or listen to it on the website or in a pop-up window.
A huge collection of writings, "a quiet place in cyberspace devoted to religious tolerance and scholarship." Check out topics Neo-Paganism/Wicca or Book of Shadows.
Support religious freedom - get active with help from this website and write to your congressperson!
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Author Events
Meet Christopher Penczak, author of The Mystic Foundation, at several appearances across this September! Date: September 8 Time: 7 to 9 pm Event Location: Soul Journey, 9 Main St, Butler, NJ, 07405. 973-838-6564 Date: September 10 Time: 10 am to 6 pm Event Location: Soul Journey, 9 Main St, Butler, NJ, 07405. 973-838-6564. $60. Date: September 29 Time: 7 to 8:30 pm Event Location: The Cat, the Crow, & the Crown, 63R Pickering Wharf, Salem, MA. 978-744-6274 
Kristin Madden, author of Dancing the Goddess Incarnate, will hold the following appearances this summer: Date: August 26 - 27 Event Location: Ardantane, Jemez Springs, NM. 87025. 505-469-7777. Date: September 16 - 17 Event Location: Pagan Pride Neveda, Bartley Ranch, Reno, NV. |
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