Note: This poem by Sierra Black is a reprint from July 22, 2004 on ChildWild. Tiny goddess of my body I’m twenty-six today, and you have Two months and two days even In the world. The tail end of our nap this afternoon found you curled Against my skin as if you Did not care if we were one or two. Startled by the beauty of your eyes, I (inadvertently) dropped a book on your head. A slim paperback volume... Read more
Pagan Families was created to fill a gap in resources on Pagan pregnancy and birth. Google something like “Pagan pregnancy” and you’ll come up with a lot of queries on message boards complaining about the dearth of information. But it’s certainly not the case that there aren’t any existing resources. The problem is that they tend to be scattered and often brief. You can easily find lots of one-time blog posts and webpages about a single aspect of Pagan pregnancy... Read more
The success of Pagan Families will depend on readers such as yourself making contributions. Here are some ideas of genres and topics that we’d like to publish: Genres: Ritual scripts Personal essays Theological essays Media reviews Prayers Chants Visual art Birth stories Meditations Childbirth preparation exercises Sensitivity guides for birth professionals Topics: Conception Pregnancy Birth Motherhood Fatherhood Pregnancy loss Abortion Postpartum There’s so much territory for us to explore: How do Pagans name their babies? How do Pagans change their... Read more
Note: This birth story by Sierra Black is a reprint from July 15, 2007 on ChildWild. The story of her first child’s birth is here. Serena Rose Hunter Black was born at 10 pm EST on July 9 at The Birth Cottage, as planned. She was born in the birth tub and caught by her dad. Her sister cut the cord like she’d been wanting to. Serena Rose weighed 10 pounds 7 ounces, is 23 inches long and has very... Read more
‘Holy Mother, In whom we live, move and have our being, From you all things emerge and unto you all things return…’ This is the beginning of a prayer I learned from T Thorn Coyle just before becoming pregnant with my first child. It is only a slight twist on a biblical verse Acts 17:28 with which I was already familiar. As a religious studies scholar, whose work focused on women in religion and Mariology (the study of the... Read more
Scenes from the labyrinth The kids all banged on their drums and shook their rattles, following me on the snaking path into the center of the labyrinth and back out again. It was a noisy, sloppy, joyful, sunny couple of minutes. Rewind one year to find the scene of me leading a group of adults in a slow, contemplative evening walk through the labyrinth’s twists and turns. Having a baby has really changed my spiritual practice. Purgation, Illumination, Integration In... Read more
Note: This beautiful birth story by Sierra Black is a reprint from June 1, 2004 on ChildWild. I am a mother! Rio Willow Hunter Black was born at 4:10 p.m. EST on May 24, 2004. She weighed 9lbs 4 oz, and has a thick head of dark brown hair and dark blue eyes. Though we did have to transport to hospital to birth her, Mom, baby and Dad are all in perfect health and happily settled at home now. Martin... Read more
When I was pregnant with my daughter I searched for a guide to the spiritual aspects of my journey to motherhood, but never found what I was looking for. I’ve heard one too many times from other Pagan parents that they wish for such a guide, and so now Pagan Families is born. Pagan moms and dads, midwives and friends have felt the energetic changes that a new being brings, crafted rituals to honor the life passages around birthing, and... Read more
Pagan Families
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