Brigid, Our Patron Goddess

 

 

Beloved Brigid, Celtic Fire Goddess

-A testimony

Brigid is the powerful Celtic Goddess of fire I will tell you how it is I came to know her by fire, twice!

It was Imbolc and our coven was meeting on Saturday evening to honor the chosen Goddess Frigga since the following day we were holding a separate Goddess Temple service to honor Brigid and the Sabbat. 

Since it was February and close to Valentines Day we chose Frigga instead of the first thought of Aphrodite or Venus as our symbol of Love.

We adorned the altar with red white and pink candles, cloth and figurines’.

We placed a picture of Frigga on the altar and then went into the other room to get our coven together.

While we were “checking in” with each other the smell of smoke was wafting through the rooms to us. We ran into the other room to find flames and smoke so thick you could not tell the ceiling form the floor.

We all pulled together and ran in and out of the room extinguishing the fire and trying to get the smoke outside

The fire was contained to just the altar table and the carpet under it. Everything was burned or melted on the table, everything but the piece of paper we had printed out the picture of Frigga on and set in the middle of the table! Yes, a plain piece of paper sat in the middle of the altar engulfed in flames and did not have a single mark on it.

After everyone was calm and the room was smoke free we sat and determined that Brigid did not like us honoring another Goddess on her day and she left the picture unharmed as her note to us. The room was cleansed by fire and the day will forever be known as Brigid’s day and none others.

The next day at our Sabbat service we had a fire roaring in the fireplace and many pictures were taken. When I was putting the pictures from the day online I noticed in the pictures of the hearth and fire there was an image! There is an unmistakable image of Brigid in the flames wearing a crown/veil and all!

She had come to be there with us that Imbolc day as we honored her properly. I had never felt so moved in my whole life and so sure that the Gods/Goddess’ are here with us everyday and that they are always with us when we call upon them.

I still have and will forever hold dear to my heart the photo of Frigga with a small splatter of candle wax as the only mark of the fire and the picture of Brigid in her Imbolc flames. Brigid holds a very special place in my heart now and forever.

 

 

2nd Annual Chili Cook off and Bake sale!!!

Goddess Temple Chili Cook Off and Bake Sale! – 10/01/11

 

The Chili Cook off will be held on October 1st from 1pm-6pm at Goddess Blessed. Goddess Blessed is located at 15729 Madison Avenue, Lakewood, Ohio 44107

We will have at least 6 different Chilies to taste.

Admission is $10, which will include a tasting portion of all chilis, and a bottle of water. Sour cream and cheese will also be available to top off your chili.

Our cooks will be Sheila, Keith, Beith, Paul, Buddha Stephen, and Brinden.

Our judges are Gini, Jerry, and Meghan

Bake Sale:

There will be a table of baked goods of different varieties for sale that day, also to help support our temple. Linda Kean and Heather Lorman will be in charge of the bake sale table. Donations of baked goods are needed.

Cooks:

Each cook needs to be at the store by 12:00pm with your Chili that is ready to go in a crock pot or self contained warming unit. Also, you need to provide a list of all ingredients, so we have no allergic reactions. You do not need to provide a recipe if you do not wish to.You can bring extra spices if you would like people to be able to spice up your chili even more.

Find Us On Facebook!!!!!

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Goddess-Temple/351120540027

Levels Of Sponsorship

New Levels of sponsorship to the temple were discussed at our last board meeting. It is very important to help out by donating to the temple. Now with these new  levels of donators we will be able to get closer to the funds to find and or build our own temple building. Become an important part of the temple building team. We always are looking for volunteers and donations. Come and help in any way you can! 

 

The suggested levels are as follows:

$50 – Newsletter by mail

$100 – Newsletter by mail and a mug

$250 – Newsletter, mug, and tickets to the spaghetti dinner

$500 – Newsletter, mug, spaghetti dinner tickets, and a Temple calendar.

$1000 – Newsletter, mug, spaghetti dinner tickets, a Temple calendar, and a daily candle lit for the sponsor in the Temple room

Pudding Pie – Heather Lorman

1pkg instant pudding any flavor (This recipe is using Butterscotch)

3 cups of cold milk

1tsp vanilla

1 envelope of Dream whip

1 pie shell of your choice (This recipe uses a graham cracker pie crust)

Take any flavor of pudding that you love and make it according to the package. 2 cups of cold milk and pudding mix, whip together until thick. Take ½ of the pudding mixture and place it in a pie shell of your choice. For this pie a graham cracker pie crust is used. You can buy one already made from the store or you can take a package of graham cracker and 3 tlb. Butter and make your own by crushing up the graham crackers into little pieces pour butter over and mix then press into a pie shell. (You can substitute a Oreo cookie pie shell as well.)Then take the other half of the pudding mixture and mix it with a package of dream whip made according to the dream whip package. One envelope of dream whip, one cup cold milk and one tsp. of vanilla, beat until thick. Take the rest of the pudding and fold it into the dream whip. Beat those together. Then pour remaining mixture into pie shell refrigerate for about 2- hours until pudding and dream whip mixture seems firm enough. Then serve.

Sabbat of Mabon, Feast Of Avalon Autumnal Equinox – Rev. Ginny Vigrass

 

The great ancient Sabbat festival of Mabon is named for the Welsh Celtic God.  It celebrates our Thanksgiving for the abundant fruits and crops of the earth.  It is also known as the Feast of Avalon, which means “Land of Apples.”  Avalon is a Celtic name for the Land of the Dead. Mabon is the second of three harvests and is especially associated for the vine harvests and wine. It is associated with the harvesting of apples which are seen as symbols of renewed life. It is a spiritually uplifting time for all of us to share our appreciation to the Goddess and God to receive blessings during the winter months. In our northern hemisphere,  this equinox is on September 21–24. The Celts honored this Sabbat by harvesting apples , invoking the Goddess at a cemetery where loved ones are buried and by putting apples on headstones for the promise of life renewed, bobbing for apples, etc. These acts are for the wishes of the living to be reunited with dear loved ones and symbolize our thankfulness for the life-giving harvest celebration. The altar may be filled with photos of loved ones, apples, wine, vine, garland, burial cairns, cornucopia, corn, and colors of: orange, maroon,  and russet. The Welsh Celtic name Mabon was coined about 1970 as a reference to Mabon ap Modron . In my Welsh language, “AP” means “son”. Mabon and his mother Modron ( ” Divine Mother” ) were descended from a divine mother-son pair, deities in origin .  Welsh legends link Mabon with King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.  King Arthur rescued Mabon from prison in Gloucester, England.  Then, Mabon was at King Arthur’s side, including the great hunt after the great boar Twrch!  Deities for this festival include Harvest Deities, Aging Deities and wine Gods.  Evoke Mabon or his mother Modron to honor them as the deities who brought forth this bountiful, beautiful harvest.

Sitting with the Goddess – Gini Judd

Now that the Temple Room is devoted full-time as worship space, members are encouraged to take shifts being present in the room during the hours that Goddess Blessed is open. Two-hour shifts are recommended, on a schedule that works for you.  The duties are to greet people coming into the temple room, sell temple items if people are interested, answer questions about the temple (or direct questions to a temple board member), point out the goddess votives that are for sale. But mostly you will be present with the goddess and help promote the temple room’s spiritual atmosphere. 

I highly encourage all members to volunteer for this opportunity. Spending two quiet hours with the goddess is a wonderful gift to grant yourself. At the beginning of the time, you may busy yourself lighting candles and incense, choosing music, perhaps straightening pillows. Then as time passes, you will fall into the quiet presence in the room. You may read, or meditate, or visit with other temple members, but the sense that you are with the goddess, focused in your devotion, permeates your time in the temple. 

I leave my time at the temple feeling calm and refreshed. It’s a wonderful experience that I feel fortunate to enjoy. You may sign up for your temple time on the calendar in the temple room. I urge you to give yourself the gift of that time.

Lammas- Heather

  Lammas is the time of year that is to celebrate the harvest and the reaping of the first grain. Lammas or Lughnasad, which means loaf-mass day, is celebrated on August 1. Originally Lammas, celebrated by the Celts from the sunset on August first to the sunset on August second, included an honorary reaping of the new grain to be eaten. It was believed that the grain died so people could live and flourish for the year. Since in recent times most of us do not have grain growing in our backyards to honorably reap we can celebrate and honor the goddess and God Lugh, who the holiday was named for, by baking fresh bread. In order to make the bread more personal ingredients and herbs from the garden can be added. Another way to celebrate the Goddess is to make corn dolls out of corn husks and tie them in the shape of a woman to literally represent the grain Goddess. Lammas is a day to honor the grain Goddess and the sun God, it is also time to have feasts and give thanks for the grain and harvest.

Summer Berry Spring Roll – Heather

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup hot water

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar for dusting

1 cup fresh berries of any kind. (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries or a mixture) 

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tsp Knox gelatin

1 tbls. white sugar

Directtions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a jelly roll pan. Line it with buttered foil or buttered parchment paper.

 Beat the eggs until thick and lemon colored. Gradually add 1 cup white sugar, beating constantly. Stir in water and vanilla extract. Fold in flour, baking powder, and salt. Pour batter into tin.

 Bake for 15 minutes. or until springy to the touch, and beginning to shrink away from the sides of the pan.

 Lay out a tea towel, and sprinkle it with confectioners’ sugar. Turn the jelly roll out on the towel. Take off the paper or foil. Cut away crusty edges. Roll the cake up in the towel, and leave it to cool.

 Whip the cream. Add Knox gelatin and 1 tbl. sugar. Fold in berries. Unroll the cake. Spread with the strawberry cream, and roll up again. Chill. Cover the top with more whipped cream when serving.

Smudging – Kathy Curran

Smudging is a ceremony that we borrow from the Native Americans.  The belief is that certain herbs, when burnt, have the ability to clear a space and a person of negative energies.  White sage is the herb most commonly used; however, any of the ‘heavier’ scented herbs and resins are also appropriate, i.e. sandalwood, frankincense, or dragon’s blood.  Typically the dried sage is tied into a wand and one end is lit.  The herb will produce a fragrant smoke and then holding the smoldering sage wand in your hand, you walk the perimeter of all the rooms in your dwelling including attics, basements, closets and entryways.  Once this is completed, it is believed that a vacuum has been created; void of any energies.

Now one wants to fill this clear space with positive energies.  This can be done in a number of ways.  One way is to light a white candle thereby attracting angels and angelic energies.  Native Americans often use the herb sweetgrass for this part of the ceremony.  Any incense or essential oil that has special significance can be used.  It is recommended to perform this ceremony monthly, around the time of the full moon; and anytime there has been activities of discord in the home.  One can also perform this smudging ceremony on themselves and other people.  Many people incorporate this ceremony at the beginning of rituals, both solitary and group.

A Letter From The President-Kathy Curran

Why tithe to the Goddess Temple!?

 I believe it is important to support where one is spiritually fed and this can be done either by volunteering your time, your talents, or donating money.  I believe that giving in this manner increases what is given to you!

  The Goddess Temple is a grass roots fledgling enterprise and certainly benefits from all that support her.  We are engaged in fundraising events to finance a building for the Temple. 

We are presently selling cloth shopping bags and travel mugs to raise funds. We will also have a spaghetti dinner this fall.  One of our new adventures is in creating a Goddess Calendar; this will be our second edition this year. 

As a founding Temple; we don’t have a ‘parent’ organization to assist with these goals.  We are solely dependent on our members!!

 So, remember to give thanks back to the Goddess!