Do those of us who call ourselves Druids have a right to use the name? Without clearly recognized standards of preparation and achievement does the term have any meaning? Is the name so tightly attached to the priests, healers and advisors of the ancient Celtic world that it is now impossible to become a Druid? Alison Leigh Lilly of the Meadowsweet and Myrrh blog has a long essay on this topic that’s worth the time to read. It was inspired... Read more
Sermon – The Sacred Earth The Denton Unitarian Universalist Fellowship August 21, 2011 Introduction One evening in a Buddhist monastery, a group of monks were cleaning up after dinner. One of the monks was less than fully present – he seemed to just want to get finished, whether the dishes were clean or not. Another monk noticed and said “remember – these are the Buddha’s bowls!” But an elder monk heard this and said “no, they are not the Buddha’s... Read more
From Patheos, here’s an essay by Crystal Blanton titled “The Gods That Choose You.” It details her experience with Yemaya, an African deity who chose her. In Crystal’s words: One day I was walking a path that I thought led to Cerridwen and the next day there were obvious signs being presented that I was now a daughter of Yemaya and that was just the way it is. Crystal’s experience is similar to my own. I was introduced to Paganism... Read more
It matters what company we keep. I was in the 10th grade. My English teacher had assigned a project to collect and summarize a series of newspaper and magazine articles on some theme I’ve long since forgotten. I didn’t really care for this teacher, I thought her project was more appropriate for elementary school than high school, and as a result I hadn’t started working on it with less than a week to go before it was due. The project... Read more
Ten years ago this week I was handed a layoff notice. It wasn’t a shock – reorganization had been discussed for months and the factory where I worked wasn’t going to have enough volume left to support all of its staff. But it was still frustrating – it was the third job that went away within a seven year period. The first two had required cross-country moves to find a new job and I knew there was a high probability... Read more
Amy Martin at the 2010 Winter SolstiCelebration I have been less than gracious toward the folks who call themselves “spiritual but not religious.” While I’ve always respected those seeking Wisdom and Truth in non-traditional ways, I’ve come across too many people who use the spiritual-but-not-religious tag as an excuse for spiritual laziness and for avoiding religious communities. After listening to Amy Martin this morning, I think I need to re-evaluate my gut-level response. In her sermon/presentation at Denton UU this... Read more
Today is “The Response” – a fundamentalist Christian gathering in Houston that has called for a day of prayer and fasting in response to what they see is a great moral crisis in the United States. It has attracted extra attention because Texas governor and likely US presidential candidate Rick Perry is the headliner. Given the publicity Perry has generated for this event, I assume you’re already familiar with the problems of The Response. I want to talk about my... Read more
Everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it – attributed to Mark Twain It’s hot. It’s August and I live in Texas – it’s supposed to be hot. This Summer, though, is different. Dallas – Fort Worth has had 32 straight days of 100 degrees or more. The average is only 16 per year, and the all-time records of 42 straight 100 degree days and 69 total are looking reachable. Other regions are also seeing extreme –... Read more
In a new post on her blog, author and teacher Thorn Coyle asks “are you harvesting what you expected?” I normally think of Lughnasadh as a time for thanksgiving. Samhain – and the secular New Year – is when I think about reviews. But there is value in taking frequent looks back. We set goals earlier in the year, we made plans – how are we doing? Are we where we thought we’d be? Are there triumphs we need to... Read more
I posted this for Independence Day 2010 – I think it’s time to post it again. I wrote it for the Denton CUUPS “Lunar Eclipse Ritual for America” which we did as part of the Spells for Democracy project in 2004. With everything going on now I think our country can use all the help it can get. Let us now invoke the Spirits of America, as we call upon those who have led and inspired us throughout history. We... Read more
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