the Ritual Last Night

March 26, 2011

the Ritual Last Night

Last night was the Temple’s official celebration of the Martyrdom of Hypatia of Alexandria. I’ve said before that I consider Hypatia to be one of the ancestral spirits of this Temple, as one as one of my personal heroes.

It was a great evening. Three other people were in attendance, including my adoptive mother. She has been bogged down lately with life stuff. This was the first time in a while she’s been able to attend ritual like she used to, so it was wonderful to have her here again.

I wrote the ritual to appeal to Hypatia as an ally in the fight against religious intolerance in all forms and against the tide of anti-intellectualism that there seems to be in America.

I had planned on offering Hypatia the traditional Greek heroic offering of milk and honey, but at the last minute I discovered that my boyfriend had finished off the milk. I had to substitute clear water for milk, but the ritual went off fine. You have to work with what you have. Sometimes if you wait for everything to be perfect before you do ritual, you’ll never do anything at all. The Gods aren’t horribly picky, but it is important to actually DO ritual. We show our loves for the Gods by actions, not just warm fuzzy thoughts. But it was a great night. The energy was very serene and peaceful.

templeofathena

Greek

Alexandria, ancestors, Hypatia

3 responses to “the Ritual Last Night”

sarenth

March 26, 2011

I am glad your ritual went well, and it was a time for you and your adoptive mother to come together. It sounds beautiful, and I am happy that people like you are working “against the tide of anti-intelluctualism” that seems to want to swallow America.

“We show our loves for the Gods by actions, not just warm fuzzy thoughts.” Very true. When I’ve run out of mead, I’ve given my Gods and Ancestors water. When I have run out of the better foods I like to give Them I make do with what I have. It’s nice to know I’m not the only one!

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thehouseofvines

March 29, 2011

There’s a line in the Egyptian wisdom tradition that has always resonated deeply with me: “Worship the gods with what’s in your hands.” Even a humble and imperfect offering is still better than none, especially when it comes from the heart, comes from the stuff of our daily lives, comes from our effort and sweat – comes from our hands, in other words. And as you say, if you wait for everything to be perfect worship will never happen. So yes, a very important lesson we all should take to heart.

And, incidentally, offerings of water were commonplace in the Egyptian cult of the dead so that’s not an inappropriate thing to give to the great lady Hypatia!

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Titus M lupus

March 31, 2011

that is a great ritual, I love it

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Temple of Athena the Savior