Blessing Your House

Earlier this month I talked about making a Brighid's Cross to be used in a house blessing ritual. Well here is the house blessing ritual. You can use this after you clean your house for the Sabbat. If you don't want to use chemicals for this cleaning, then look back at my post on using vinegar to clean.


Items Needed

• White Candle
• Chalice of Water
• Brighid's Cross
• Bell for each child participating
  

Instructions

Let the children walk through the house ringing the bells in each room. Tell them to imagine the sound bringing in light. As they do so have them say in each room:

The sound brings the light
Chases the shadow

Then walk through with the children helping them to sprinkle water in each room. Have them say:

With this water I bless this house
Let it be washed clean

Next go through the house with the white candle. Parents hold the candle unless your child is old enough to not set themselves on fire. Have the children say:

With this fire I bless this house
Let it be made pure

Finally take the Brighid's Cross through the house. In each room have them say:

Brighid, Brighid bringer of the light
Bless this house and fill it with love 

When you are done you can hang the Brighid's Cross over your front door. This will ensure blessings for the entire year.

Blessed Be!

Imbolc Breakfast Recipes

While Yule is the more traditional time for us Pagans to get up at dawn and have an early ritual, I figured  that I would share some breakfast recipes for Imbolc. Hope you all enjoy


Maiden Wakes Muffins

• 2 cups flour
• 2 Carrots, grated
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 green apple, peeled, cored, grated
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup almonds, sliced
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2tsp.vanilla 

Soak raisins in hot water, in a covered bowl, for 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly. 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large non-metal bowl, mix flour, soda, cinnamon, and salt. 
Stir in carrots, raisins, apple, and almonds. 
In a separate bowl, beat eggs, oil, and vanilla until well blended. Stir egg mixture in to the flour mixture until just wet. 
Grease muffin pan with a little butter or use cupcake/muffin cups. 
Divide the batter into the cups and bake for 20-22 minutes, or until golden brown. 
Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan. Makes 8 servings. 


Returning Sun Spice Bread

• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1/8 cup poppyseeds
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 cup raisins, plain or golden
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 cup butter/margarine
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 3/4 cup Karo golden corn syrup
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 4 tbs. milk
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 tsp. mixed spices** 

**Equal parts of cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.

Sift the flour, soda, and baking powder into a non-metal bowl. Add the mixed spice and ginger. 
Next add the brown sugar and raisins. Mix.
 Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. 
In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and the syrup over a low heat, then pour liquid into the well in the middle of the flour mixture. 
Add the beaten egg and the milk, and mix very well. 
Pour into a well greased 2-lb loaf pan and bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees for 40-50 minutes. This bread can be made the night before as it improves with age. Makes 8-10 servings. 

Traditional Food for Imbolc

Traditional foods for the Imbolc celebration include those made with seeds, (to symbolize growth), raisins (a fruit of the Sun God), pork, poultry, or lamb, with sides of potatoes, cabbage, onions, and garlic. Imbolc is the mid-point of the dark half of the year, and though stored foods are running low, it is a celebration of renewal and preparation for Spring.

Imbolc Feast Lamb Stew

2- 1/2 lb. lamb neck chops
1 tbs. lamb fat
4 medium onions
1 tbs. butter/margarine
4 medium carrots
2 1/2 cups water
4 medium potatoes
1 tbs. parsley, chopped
1 tsp. each salt & pepper
1 tbs. chives, chopped

Don't let the butcher trim the fat off of the lamb chops. Shred some of the excess fat and cook it down in a large pot or Dutch-oven. Peel the onions, carrots, and potatoes. Cut the onions and carrots into quarters, and put all the vegetables aside. Cut the meat into8 pieces, and trim away the rest of the excess fat. The bones need not be removed. Place the meat in the hot fat and brown. Repeat with the onions and carrots. Add water, salt, and pepper carefully. Put whole potatoes on top. Cover pot and simmer gently until meat is cooked, approx. 2 hours. Remove from heat. Pour off the cooking liquid into a separate sauce pan, allow to cool for a few minutes, skim off grease, and reheat. Add butter, chives, and parsley to the reheated liquid in the sauce pan. Pour heated liquid back over the stew. Serve hot. Makes 4-6 servings.

Blessed Bride's Cake

1 cup sugar
1 cup walnut meats, chopped
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup flour
4 eggs
1 tsp. baking powder

Mix all the ingredients together until they are wet. Do not over mix. Pour into a greased and floured 9"x9"x2" square baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until knife inserted in middle of cake comes out clean. Allow to cool before serving.

New Moon Ritual for Children

Preparation

Start this ritual in silence and darkness lit by a single candle, black or a dark color would be good but is not necessary. Have your children take a moment to still themselves and focus on their breath. Guide them if needed. Breath In, Breath Out. Breath In, Breath Out.

Tell them that tonight you are going to call on the Goddess. Not as the Mother but as Her Mother, the Grandmother. That tonight is a night to listen. For the Grandmother loves to tell stories and through them provide wisdom to the people of the Earth. Take a moment to answer any questions that they may have. And that with her the Grandfather as well.

Circle Casting

Have all join hands and still their thoughts. Let the first to speak say;

From Me to You; followed by the next person saying
From You to Me
and repeat until all have said both lines.
For the purpose of tonight's ritual have the chant move widdershins (counter-clockwise) around the circle of people.

Then when it gets back to the first let them say;

The Circle is Cast and the Temple is raised.
So Mote It Be! (All can repeat)

Quarter Calling

Start tonight in the West the direction of sunsets and endings. Have a cup of water there and have all take a small drink. Have all think about the water and how much we need it.

In the West we call Water.
May we have the vision tonight
To see inside its murky depths.

Now move to South where you have a candle ready to be lit. Light it now. And have all focus on its flame. Carefully let them feel its heat.

In the South we call Fire.
May it light our way
To find wisdom tonight.

Next we come to the East. Have a fan here and wave it at all present so that they can feel the presence of air.

In the East we call Air.
May it clear all obstacles that seek
To block us in our search.

Finally we come to the North. In my practice I like to have a bowl of patchouli here so that we can smell it and be reminded about the Earth.

In the North we call Earth.
May it grant us the strength
To face the wisdom granted us.

Ritual Body

Now is a time to reconnect as a family. Talk about your day and the trials you have had to face. You can also read from the Rede of the Grandmother and Grandfather.

If your children are old enough, you can spend some time scrying whether it is with the candle on the altar or a fire, if you are lucky enough to have a yard or space to have one.

To finish up have a goblet full of some dark juice. And hold it up the sky and say:

Grandmother, Grandfather shine on us
Imbue this goblet with your darkling rays
So as we drink we can find answers
So Mote It Be!

Then all can drink after asking, silently or aloud, the question(s) that they need answers to. Also be sure to spend some time tonight reflecting on the past year. I know many of you will be doing this on Samhain but I like to reflect on things as we move closer to Samhain.

When all have finished you can do Cakes and Juice to ground or feast afterwards.

Cakes and Juice

Touch the plate of cookies or cakes and say; Flesh of my Flesh
Then touch the juice in the goblet and say; Blood of my Blood

We are of Them as They are of us.
Joined in Love and Light
Married in Strength and Truth
Showered in Power and Blessings
We Drink from Her womb
We Eat from His hand

Drink from the chalice and then eat from the plate of food feeling Their Love and Strength.
So that we always remember our Love for Them and Their Love for Us
Pour out a libation and leave some food for the Earth and for the Gods.

Closing

Grandmother and Grandfather we thank you for your presence
This evening as we came to honor you
And to seek wisdom.
Hail and Farewell! (All can repeat)

Return to the North;

Element of Earth we thank you for your presence
Hail and Farewell! (All can repeat)

East

Element of Air we thank you for your presence
Hail and Farewell! (All can repeat)

South

Element of Fire we thank you for your presence
Hail and Farewell! (All can repeat)

West

Element of Water we thank you for your presence
Hail and Farewell! (All can repeat)

To close circle have all join hands. And the first to speak at the casting releases his grip on his left hand and says; We open the Circle.
Moving deosil (clockwise) have each member repeat until the chant moves back to the first person. Who says; But we remain a Circle. Family united in spirit. Circle open but unbroken.

Then have all have a group hug. Remembering that we are all one family.

The Goddess Brighid

Brigit was one of the great Triple Goddesses of the Celtic people. She appeared as Brigit to the Irish, Brigantia in Northern England, Bridein Scotland, and Brigandu in Brittany. Many legends are told about Brigit. Some say that there are three Brigits: one sister in charge of poetry and inspiration who invented the Ogham alphabet, one in charge of healing and midwifery, and the third in charge of the hearth fire, smithies and other crafts. This actually indicates the separate aspects of Her three-fold nature and is a neat division of labor for a hard-working Goddess.

Actually, the Goddess Brigit had always kept a shrine at Kildare, Ireland, with a Perpetual Flame tended by nineteen Virgin Priestesses called Daughters of the Flame. No male was ever allowed to come near it; nor did those women ever consort with men. Even their food and other supplies were brought to them by women of the nearby village. When Catholicism took over in Ireland, the Shrine became a Convent and the virgin Priestesses became Nuns but the same traditions were held and the Eternal Flame was kept burning. Their tradition was that each day a different Priestess/Nun was in charge of the Sacred Fire and on the 20th day of each cycle, the fire was miraculously tended by Brigit Herself. For over a thousand years, the Sacred Flame was tended by Nuns, and no one knows how long before that it had been tended by the Priestesses.

In 1220 CE, a Bishop became angered by the no-males policy of the Abbey of St. Brigit of Kildare. He insisted that nuns were subordinate to priests and therefore must open their Abbey and submit themselves to inspection by a Priest. When they refused and asked for another Abbess or other female official to perform any inspections, the Bishop was incensed. He admonished them to obedience and then decreed that the keeping of the Eternal Flame was a Pagan custom and ordered the Sacred Flame to be extinguished.

In 1220 CE, a Bishop became angered by the no-males policy of the Abbey of St. Brigit of Kildare. He insisted that nuns were subordinate to priests and therefore must open their Abbey and submit themselves to inspection by a Priest. When they refused and asked for another Abbess or other female official to perform any inspections, the Bishop was incensed. He admonished them to obedience and then decreed that the keeping of the Eternal Flame was a Pagan custom and ordered the Sacred Flame to be extinguished.

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Fire and Children

Last week, about this time, I wrote about teaching the element of Air to children. This week as the title suggests I wanted to talk about introducing them to the element of Fire.

Fire is the second step in any elemental journey. It lies in the South, generally. And rules over love and passions. It is the active and planning phase of a project, whether magickal or mundane. Its color is red and its tool is the athame, although as I said last week it may otherwise be the wand depending on ones tradition.

The following exercise can be held at any time, but I recommend midday. Since that is the hottest part of the day and the height of the sun's power.

Lay out your altar with a red cloth. You can decorate it with symbols of Fire. Candles, peppers and symbols of cats or phoenixes would all be appropriate. Light the candle and stay at the altar and let everyone (carefully) feel the heat of the flame. Then have your kids put their hands over their hearts and with eyes closed, feel the heat of their bodies and the beat of their hearts.

Let them know that we contain all the elements and that this is proof of the Fire within us. That Fire animates us, gives us life and allows us to continue on. Now is a good time for a group hug, let them know that fire represents love as well.

Now cast circle. And invoke in the element of Fire. A sample invocation could be;

I stand in the South and invoke the Element of Fire
I call the powers of midday and the warmth of the flame
Come and attend to us, let us know your presence

Now all can sit and meditate on the energy of Fire that you have called to circle. Help your children to become comfortable and familiar with the element of Fire. Ask them questions like;

• Is it male or female?
• Are the energies fast or slow?
• Do you see any colors?
• Or have any impressions at all?

Just let them talk and see what comes of it.

The purpose of this exercise is to let the child become comfortable with the energies of the element, so that at some point, when they call the Quarters, they will be able to know what energies to invoke.

When you are done you can bid farewell to the Element of Fire. Again here is a sample devocation;

I return to South to the Element of Fire

To offer thanks for your presence this day

And to bid you Hail and Farewell!

When you are ready you can close circle. Make sure that you take time for any more questions and for everyone to eat something small so that they can be properly grounded.

Now this is just one of the Elements. Over the next few weeks I am going to cover the next two elements and spirit as well. So make sure you subscribe, if you haven't already and stay tuned. I would love to hear any feedback so that I can fine tune the coming articles.