Mirth Reverence

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I am often asked about good starter books for people interested in Wiccan and Western Occult Magic. Here is my initial pass at a good general list of so called “wicca 101″ books.

Please note – none of these books is a bible. All of them have their problems and their strengths.

Yesterday Jamie and I took a trip over to The Sacred Well to swap out some of my Altar Dolls. The Sacred Well is a wonderful new age / occult / craft store in the Lake Merritt district of Oakland, CA.

The wonderful folks at the store have been hosting my Altar dolls in a rotating gallery for about a year now. Every six weeks or so I change out the dolls to show another one and so it goes. We started with Kore last spring to kick of the cycle, worked through several of the Oshun dolls (which enticed a friend of the store to buy River Oshun), then Demeter took a turn over the autumn Equinox, and moved on to several of the Oya dolls (which also got snapped up).

Rabbit, one of the owners of Sacred Well, created a small altar set up for the dolls near the reading room and the cash register. With each doll the altar set up gets a little more elaborate and beautiful. Each of the dolls seems to collect offerings and goodies, so that when I go in to change out the dolls, we have to sort through the assortment to figure out what she gets to keep and what stays with the altar!

The Sacred Well also carries a number of Jamie’s single and multi-strand necklaces as well as the new line of Power Animal and Deity necklaces that Jamie and I have created for folks who want a simple want to have a daily connection with various spirit powers.

Currently the store has the Lord and Lady of Wicca  and Sir EJ on display through the middle of May.

So if you are in the area stop this is your chance to see these dolls in person as well as visit an amazing store!

Blessings,

Kate

Winter
falls
on snow white paws.
Thick, round and furry.
Lands on my tongue and melts.
Lands on my hair, my clothes and dances in the wind
creating
a new-borne, fragile echo of white light.
Dances with frozen cold fingers
under my scarf and
between
the gaps where I horde warmth.
I shiver and she
laughs. I smile and she
dances in my throat
leaving dragon-plume breaths behind.
c. J. Buschbaum [...]

Cinder found the best hiddy spot between the cutting table and the window. It allows her to look out at the world in peace and safety, and occassionaly to poke her head up and check out what we humans are doing with *her* cutting table.

For the ritual Jamie and I created for PantheaCon 2009 “A Walk in the Garden” which explored some of the core elements of Wicca, we used the Charge of the Goddess as written by Doreen Valiente as part of the words spoken by the Goddess and voiced by the five priestesses. Since we were working with polarity and balance we wanted a piece of equal weight to that powerful charge for the God to speak. While Doreeen wrote several Charge of God poems, none of them felt quite right for what we were doing and none of them specifically paralleled her original Charge of the Goddess in form and structure. So… we wrote our own.

Charge of the God
By Jamie Morgan and Catherine Pennington
Adapted from Doreen Valiente’s “Charge of the Star Goddess”

I who am the power of the velvet darkness, And the echoing space between the stars, And the depths of the endless sea, and the fire in the hearts of all. I come from the darkness, from out of that which is everything. From me all things proceed, and unto me all things must return; and before my face, beloved of our loins, let thine innermost human self be enfolded, in the rapture of the world.

Let my worship be within the body that dances; And therefore, let: Splendor and Potency, Command and Kindness, Respect and Modesty, Laughter and Solemnity shine through you.

And you who thinkest to know me – then walk with me in the light and the dark, in the shadows of your soul and the brilliance of your love. And together we may find the mysteries of the universe if you have the patience to see into the hearts of all, including yourself. For behold, I have been beside thee from the first sunrise and will walk with thee to the end of days.

Winston is probably the easiest of all the cats in the Hoard to photograph because his coat reads well on film and he’s a great big goofball. He gets into the weirdest spots – between couch cushions, across two chairs (because one is just never enough) and upside down on a chair. He also LOVES any place you would rather he not get into, of course. In this case, it was a bag filled with a woven hat and raffia for a project my husband was working on. Figures.

Greetings one and all!

Now that the PantheaCon 2009 schedule is live and public, its time for the official announcement of the ritual that Jamie and Kate have been working on with a few friends. Jamie and Kate co-wrote the ritual based on an idea Kate had to celebrate the polarity aspects of the Wiccan God and Goddess. Jamie is also the Stage Manager for the ritual and will be the on site contact, as Kate cannot be at the convention yet due to her health.

PantheaCon is a great opportunity for people interested in alternative religions and spiritual ideas to gather and network with each other. The convention has been held in the Bay Area every year since 1995. Mirth and Reverence is thrilled to be a part of the convention and looks forward to sharing our work with everyone.

“A Walk in the Garden of Polarity”
Written by Catherine Pennington and Jamie Morgan

Come take a walk with us through the Garden of the Wiccan Lady and the Lord to explore and celebrate Divine Polarity from a decidedly eclectic Wiccan perspective. Covens and solitaries from the Gardnerian, NROOGD, Coven of the Sacred Feminine, CAYA, Dark Moon Circle, NineSisters Ritual Group, and Eclectic Wiccan and God. This ritual will contain an extensive guided meditation and is not suited for young children. Participants are encouraged to wear celebratory garb, their cords, and any coven insignia they may have. Everyone, Wiccan, or not are most welcome and share in this celebration!

Program Bio
Mirth & Reverence is Catherine Pennington (by Remote) and Jamie Morgan (on Site). Together they create beautiful art work including Altar dolls and Beaded Jewelry as well as teach classes on ritual and magic, and produce innovative rituals. For this ritual they have the fun of being joined by many talented ritualists including members of their coven – Ratatosk, along with members of DarkForest Coven, Coven of the Sacred Feminine, CAYA, and a collection of amazing individual solitary practitioners, techies and warders. For more information visit their website: www.mirthreverence.com

The ritual will be Sunday February 15th at 7pm in the Cedar ballroom.

If you are at the convention that weekend, look for Jamie to be out and about, when she is not prepping the ritual, and Kate’s husband Scott Pennington at his massage booth Improoovements. Stop  by and say hi!  Also keep your eyes open for the roving stuffed cat gathering photos of friends to take back to Kate!