Buzz Coil: July '08

Katrina’s Joy: Katrina Messenger reviews her accomplishments, among them the founding about 10 years ago of DC Connect, a group that does public ritual in Washington DC, in her June 23 post, "Ten Years." A fascinating story! Congrats!!!

Matters of Minutia: In a July 23 post, "8.29 am–Waltzing Matilda" Blogger Lisa in Australia writes about her hopes for her growing Womens Spirituality Group. Do you live near Newcastle NSW? Lisa is looking for women to assist.

Panthea - All Things Are Goddess: Blogger Grian has revamped her blog and it looks good! Plus it loads quicker–at least on my computer. Her July 21 post, "In Her Image: Manufacturing the Dark Goddess," warns against using "the Goddess as a crutch." Grian writes:

Creating Goddess as we see fit in order to validate destructive behavior or misguided beliefs simply shrugs off personal responsibility, much like an oil slick slipping off the hull of a ship. It’s not okay to cause damage simply because we’ve manufactured an image of Goddess that would raise her fist in support of our self-righteous indulgences. She will never stand idly by while we pollute ourselves and the world around us with pain. Karma will inevitably be knocking at the proverbial front door.

and further on in the post, she writes:

Images of the Dark Goddess abound throughout time. Many of these dark portrayals are later additions to the pantheon of Female Divinity, contributed by patriarchal influences that wished to demonized the ancient Goddess and strip her of the captivating power she held over the people of the Earth. These patriarchal forces made the Goddess into a demented fear-monger who stole little children away and ate them for supper. All of the qualities that bring us closer to nature and thus to the Goddess were stripped away and turned into bogeymen and monsters.

Don’t miss reading all of this thoughtful post!

The Village Witch: In her Asheville NC Citizen-Times blog on July 13, Byron Ballard writes a post titled, "It’s raining out and I have purple glitter on my ear," in which she tantalizes us with mention of a "spectacularly juicy Lammas/Lughnasadh ritual." If you’re like me, you’ll be checking back for more details. In her July 11 post, Byron realizes KT Turnstall’s song, "Suddenly I See" strikes a Goddess chord.

Hecate: In her July 20 post, "The Moon is as High as The Fourth of July," blogger Hecate tells how she spent the most recent full moon.

Goddess in a Teapot: In her July 4 post "Listening to Our Lives, Making Our Myths," Carolyn Lee Boyd writes that while seeking "new myths" for our times she came to realize that "real stories" have mythological resonances that may be more meaningful than devised stories.

Evoking the Goddess: In his July 15 post, "A Walk in Ancient Woodland," blogger Paul shares a photo he recently took of "fallen trees like guardian spirits." and encourages us to "honour boundaries."

Necropolis Now: In a June 23 post, Caroline Tully writes of "Goddess Judaism and Jewitchery," with pics of Asherahs and a number of links on this subject. In a July 18 post, "You Georgeous Thing," Carolyn shares material from an article in Minerva magazine on an "Oriental Aphrodite," including pics showing "openings in their stomachs, containing representations of foetuses".

Peeling a Pomegranate: Blogger Ketzirah Carly shares her impressions of the beginning of her second year of Kohenet (Hebrew priestess) training along with some lingering impressions of the first year in her July 1 post, "Kohenet Training Update: Week 5."

Radical Goddess Thealogy: Blogger Athana wonders about the "scary" attributes our cultures connects with nature, and our apparent inability to reject thim, in her July 11 post, "That Bogeywoman Called Nature."

Re-Emerging Gorgon: In her July 14 post, "Let’s Talk About Sex...And Dreams Again," The Gorgon experiments with non-reciprocity and putting her pleasure first, then sees a connection to a previous dream.
UPDATE Aug.10: This blog has morphed into Gorgon Resurfaces, and the blogger's name is now Laughing Medusa. See comment below.

The Corvid Diaries: And speaking of sex, Debi Crow’s July 19 post, "Sheela-Na-Gig," explores the history and symbolism of this sexually open Celtic Goddess.

At the End of Desire: In her July 23 post, "Temple of Artemis," blogger Inanna recalls meditating at the Temple of Artemis near Ephesus, Turkey, a year ago and the reflects on the changes in her life since then.

The Wild Hunt: In a July 19 post, "The Trouble of Teaching Biblical Content," Jason Pitzl-Waters reports on a Texas case about a law mandating a Bible-study elective in public school.

Changes...touches...

Women and Spirituality: This blog is now being absorbed by http://www.alivemindmedia.com/ (which morphs into amspirit.web.aplus.net), a site with many different sorts of blogs. The quickest way to get to what were previously bloggers on the Women and Spirituality site is to add to the url: /category/spirit . But you will still have to slog through other blogs to find the women and spirituality blogs. This change is a great disappointment to me. It was nice having a nook for mostly well-known women and spirituality bloggers. Charlene Spretnak has already announced she will no longer be participating. And this happens right in middle of a series "Was There Ever a Goddess?" by Carol P. Christ, taken from her presentation at the World Archeology Conference in Dublin a few weeks ago. Part 1, posted on July 2, is a short intro. Part 2, published on July 2, takes issue with Mircea Eliade's views and dualistic thinking in general. Part 3, published on July 9, begins to explore the Minoan religion of ancient Crete. Though Carol writes that she will continue "next week," there is not yet a Part 4. Here is the quickest way to get to her posts. I hope she finds a way to continue this series....

Welcome Newbies !
Iseum of the Triple Goddess first appeared on July 20 with a post by blogger Cymrywitch welcoming us and telling herstory. We look forward to reading more of this blog.
The House of Inanna was lauched by Brian Charles on June 20. On July 25, in his post,"A tale of two books," Brian discusses Merlin Stone's The Paradise Papers and Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine - The Rise of Disaster Capitalism. See Brian's Guest Blog here, next post down.

Did we miss an item you think is important? We’d like to know about it, so please leave it as a comment.

GUEST POST: Budapest Goddess Festival

by Brian Charles

For 20 months now I have been living in Budapest and it is an incredibly beautiful city – despite having suffered from major destruction and neglect during the nightmare that, for Hungary and its neighbours, comprised much of the 20th Century. Running through it is the River Danube, the river named after the Goddess Danu. Along this river travelled the ancestors of the peoples of Europe from paleolithic times. In the centre of the river is a yoni shaped island sacred for millennia to the Goddess and now named after a medieval nun and healer named Margit (Margaret). Around the city are hot springs renowned for their healing properties – the old Roman settlement having been named after them “Aquincum”. Above, on the western bank, are the forested Buda hills, where ancient Druids met in oak groves, while on the east is Pest and the Hungarian plain beyond. It is the geographical centre of Europe and the place where east meets west.

Before the Romans arrived here, the land that is now Hungary was inhabited by two great cultures, the Celts and the Scythians. In this year’s festival we concentrated largely on two of the principal Goddesses of this period, Brigid of the Celts and Tabiti of the Scythians. With the former we worked on healing the wounds of the past and with the latter on reclaiming the power of the amazons, who refused to submit to any authority save that which they chose for themselves. They stood for who they were.

(I was reminded of the necessity of both of these qualities - healing the past and having the courage to stand for who you - while walking in the Gay Pride procession two weeks after the festival. I have been on many demonstrations in my life and this is the first one I remember where the police were protecting and not attacking me. And protection was needed for the extreme right – nationalist, neo-nazi, fascist, define it how you will – were determined to show their disapproval with boots and fists, stones and sticks. I do not know what wounds they were nursing that they felt so much anger and hate, but I know that they were deep. It took three hours for the police to control and disperse those who wished violence but I am very glad that they succeeded. I somehow even avoided being hit by one of the hundreds of eggs and tomatoes that were thrown. It was inspiring, however, to be in the company of people of such courage and integrity.)

The festival, however, was wonderful and it is impossible to give more than a hint of what happened. The participants were mainly Hungarian although some were from neighbouring countries such as Slovenia, Slovakia, Poland and Germany and one visitor from as far as Japan. The presenters came from wider afield. From the US came Lydia Ruyle – whose Goddess banners had preceded her for the last two festivals – accompanied by her niece and two granddaughters, Alessandra Belloni – bringing the healing power of the tarantella, and the archaeologist Dr Jeannine Davis Kimball who spoke about her researches into the warrior-priestesses- the amazons?- of the nomadic peoples of the Eurasian steppes. From Australia came Anique Radiant Heart whose healing chants formed an essential part of the festival. From Glastonbury in the UK came Kathy Jones, Mike Jones, Lynne Orchard and Natasha Wardle. Kathy and Mike each focussed on the sexual wounds of women and men respectively, Lynne on the healing power of the waters and of Brigid, and Natasha on the Magdalen. Presenters from Hungary were Bori Hoppál who spoke about the long tradition of honouring the yoni, Szilvi Szentesi who focussed on the needs of the children and me who spoke and held a workshop about what I have learnt from my journey with Inanna and how she can lead to the healing of shame.

But what was really important in my view was not the speakers the presentations and the workshops – although they each played an important role but the interactions between the people who were there. Right from the initial sacred drama, written by Szilvia Simon, everybody felt a part of something much bigger. Together, we danced around the solstice fire to the music of Alessandra and a Hungarian troupe of musicians. In quieter moments we met and talked over coffee and then at other times experienced the deep soul connection that occurred in the healing ceremonies. We felt an excited delight to see the looks of surprise and pleasure as we took Lydia’s “girls” (the Goddess banners) on their third procession through the very hot and busy streets to a ceremony and fruit feast on Margit Island. For all – both ceremonialists and participants - it was an emotional roller-coaster as we learnt to work together in the service of the Goddess. Some things worked better than others but all was done in love and trust. This is what it was all about. After the first two festivals in which we planted and watered the seed, the 3rd Goddess Festival was the one in which the various elements finally came together and we started to reach out to the larger world

Brigid and Tabiti were called and they came. Why this is still a surprise to me I do not know, for I have seen it so often. I am only now beginning to see how deep the healing is and how we are beginning to stand and be seen in our own power. The Goddess of ten thousand (and many more) names is emerging from the millennia of forgetting and coming back into human consciousness. The Budapest Goddess Festival is an integral part of this re-membering.

The festival depended on many people but I just have to mention Kriszta Veres whose vision, courage, focus and perseverance have been essential to the existence of the festival and of the Budapest Goddess Temple. I will say no more than that – except to invite everybody to the 4th Budapest Goddess Festival around the Summer Solstice 2009. Please come. The Goddess movement is very young over here but people are eager to meet Her and work for Her. We know how to have fun. We love to dance. We love to laugh. The new Hungarian priest/esses and lovers of the goddess are ready to welcome all and to learn from all.

Brian Charles is a priest ("wish there was a better word!!!!" he writes) of Avalon and of Inanna. Before moving to Budapest, he was living in Glastonbury, England where he was a co-founder of the Glastonbury Goddess Temple, a presenter at the Glastonbury Goddess Conference and a teacher on the Priest/ess of Avalon training course. In Budapest he assists Kriszta Veres in the Priest/ess of Danu trainings and is finding himself increasingly drawn to Inanna – particularly with regard to the phenomenon of shame. He is currently writing about this and is devising a series of workshops that will, using Inanna as a model, enable people to examine their experience of shame and begin to move away from its toxic effects. He recently launched a blog at http://houseofinanna.blogspot.com/

TAGS:news Budapest Goddess Festival Hungary spiritual feminism Goddess movement

Heads-Up for Conference Nov 7-9

The small print on the herchurch webpage says that registration will be limited to 100 people, so we want to give you a heads-up about "Come Now, O Wisdom" a conference in San Francisco scheduled for Nov. 7-9. It includes spiritual feminists from many trads including Goddess, Womanist, Mujerista, and Christian.

Keynote speaker is Carol P. Christ, PhD, Goddess theologian and author. One of the focuses of this conference is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the first presentation of her essay, "Why Women Need the Goddess."

Other presenters include China Galland, author; Jann Aldredge-Clanton PhD, author; Rev. Shiloh McCloud, artist; Jennifer Berezan, musician; Elizabeth Ursic, religious studies faculty, Mesa Community College; Joseph Subbiondo, President of California Institute of Integral Studies; Anna Yang, labyrinth facilitator; Mary Struefert, PhD, Director of Justice for Women, ELCA; Karen Tate, author; Wanda Deifelt, Brazilian Feminist-Liberation Theologian; Rev. Beatrice Morris, Womanist thealogian; Judith Lavender Dancer, Minister of Embodiment; Pastor Gabrielle Schroeder, PhD, artist; Stacy Boorn, herchurch pastor; and Robyn Hartwig, drumming facilitator.

We compliment herchurch, located in the Ebenezer Lutheran Church in San Francisco, for putting together such a diverse and inclusive program. For more info, go on over to herchurch.org.

GUEST POST: Papal Ventures to a "Godless" Country: Australia 2008

by Glenys Livingstone

Sydney Australia is a pilgrimage that the head of the Roman Church had to make: duty required it, but if his past comments are anything to go by then perhaps he would rather have stayed at home. He has been quoted as having said once that Australia was a “Godless” country. I was delighted to hear this as a “Goddess” person myself. And many Goddess women here in Australia do think that this Place is a “Goddess” country … that the Great South Land Herself is playing a special role in these transforming planetary times – thanks in large part to Her indigenous care-taking inhabitants of past tens of thousands of years.

Meanwhile in the mainstream media, it looks quite different of course. It seems more that the Pope has invaded this territory – Sydney specifically. For the period of the 15-20 July, this city is experiencing all manner of disruption to usual transport services and almost unprecedented security measures. There was a move afoot by authorities to outlaw “annoying” conduct … a move that met with swift legal action by the Council for Civil Liberties and was overturned. (It was funny to hear the authorities and the Church in particular, going into denial about who was responsible for trying to make the rule!) Protestors are now allowed to wear T-shirts expressing their displeasure in papal-type opinions and to hand out condoms to the pilgrims.

As a woman who holds sacred space for the ritual celebration of Earth’s Seasonal Moments, a tradition that was specifically targeted for extinction for hundreds of years by this pontifical institution, I am quite disturbed by the loud fawning and bowing to a personage who should really be identified as a dictator. He is a political entity, whose regime has been especially deadly and abusive to women. Oh … that’s why! Silly me! I forget that this is not regarded as a crime, and indeed many texts on world religions barely mention the Inquisition: one text published 10 years ago did not reference it at all. This gynocidal effort of centuries – even millennia in different forms - has all been swept under their frocks, and they are free to continue to put the female eunuch on a pedestal where she can be kept an eye on. At this stage “Goddess” women (and men) have not been organised enough to gather a collective voice to express a remembrance of the pain and torture of our maternal lineage and the cultural domination of Europe. In 1986 when another pontiff came to town, there was a quarter page Protest Creed published in the Sydney newspaper by a Women-Church group and it catalyzed an Australian Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion that flourished for 20 years. But this time women as a specific group are apparently quiet – though perhaps we have just spread out and some are working magic and flaunting new integrity within many contexts.

Many Pagans sit around and argue with each other about how many women were murdered during the Burning Times … cringing that they might get the number wrong. But the scars on our psyches are clear, and the legacy of the atrocities is well assimiliated. I asked some Pagan groups what they might be doing to voice some protest during the papal visit. One told me that we wouldn’t want them protesting at our events so we should be quiet – and to remember how we (Pagans) had fed them to the lions. I had to admit that I had never identified with the Roman Empirical Pagans, who it seems to me were the precursors to the Roman Catholic Church Empire. It is a bit sad that even Pagans have more sympathy for Rome than for the Goddess women of their heritage. However another Pagan group … with a woman figuring more clearly in lead role (funny that!) responded that they had been giving the matter serious thought and had decided to gather and invoke the spirit of Monty Python - with a "Holy Grail/Life of Brian" night. So word has gone out and parties will be held. There are also Indigenous Australians who are voicing protest … not many will be supporting acts to the Pope Show: one T-shirt from an indigenous group read “I am a Collapsed Catholic.”

There is a hopeful side to all the Papal and Catholic parading – the “show and tell” for all to see. The absurdities and obscenities are on display … a coffin with a dead body in it as a centerpiece for their rituals, old decrepit men filling the stages mumbling overused prayers, being forced to apologize for pedophilia, trucking around in a ridiculous popemobile, and the local prelate in agreement with political entities on record as still advocating more babies … I wonder who will be making them? And how they might enforce that? These things are not going down well in the hearts and minds of ordinary people these days – of diverse cultural heritages. It certainly does not smack of any real Wisdom for these times. Australians will not be shy about responding when pie-in-the-sky is pressed in their faces. It will be amusing to watch.

This Pope may well be doing us all a service … playing his hand of cards, and bringing all the boys out from the closets. And what a sorry sight it is. I almost feel sorry for him – almost! I do not think that this Pope, who once headed the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the main tool of past inquisitory activity, will leave this “Godless/Goddess” country unscathed.
© Glenys Livingstone 2008.

Australian Glenys Livingstone is author of PaGaian Cosmology and holds a Ph.D. in Social Ecology from the University of Western Sydney, Australia. For more about her and her work, visit http://pagaian.org/

TAGS:news Pope Australia spiritual feminism women and religion Goddess Spirituality

Trends in Feminist Spirituality

IT’S OUR SECOND BLOGAVERSARY!!! So I thought it would be a good time to take a look at trends that have started or become more pronounced since we began this blog in July 2006.

One of the major trends I’ve noticed is a growing conscious differentiation between Pagan and Goddess, with either Goddess being a distinct path of current Paganism or Goddess being separate from Paganism–as a distinct path of its own. A growing number of people making this distinction identify as Goddessians. Many Goddess folk assert that their path differs greatly from New Age, with which it is sometimes confused.

Feeding into seeing Goddess as a distinct path of Paganism is the feeling among participants in some Pagan groups that patriarchal practices or attitudes which led them to leave Abrahamic religions have made their way into some Pagan groups. To me this is one aspect of the wider diminishing (and in some places/groups, dissing) of feminism and women’s issues, especially in the USA. I connect this with the political situation in this country in the last several years and I’m hoping this will change with the next Administration.

The latter view–Goddess as a path distinct from Paganism–I see as partly related to another important trend: Growth of Goddess Temples involved in contemporary Goddess spirituality worldwide. There are now Goddess temples with physical structures in England, the Netherlands, Australia, and the USA. Other groups are operating as Temples, but as yet without specific buildings, in Hungary and other European countries, and in Australia and North America. Many of these Temples are not affiliated with (other?) Pagan paths, but rather gather many participants under a large umbrella, focusing specifically on Goddess worship often with original, creative ritual.

Largely due to the Internet, a more global feel to contemporary Goddess religions is evolving. Reports of activities at a Temple or in a group in one locality may inspire activities at group or Temple elsewhere–or may inspire people in another locality to begin a group or Temple. With discussion groups, websites, blogs, and ezines of the Internet/Web this happens much faster, and more extensively, than it did before.

Another trend I’ve noticed is growing interest from academics in the part religion has played in society’s oppression and repression of women. Diminishing in its impact is a school of feminist thought that downplayed or denied the role that religion plays–going so far as to argue that a focus on religion was a diversion from the real work of feminism, which was seen as "political." In the last two years on one academic discussion list I’m on, for example, there has been a growing number–and steady stream–of requests for information on topics related to women and religion so that they can be incorporated into college curricula or texts. If you’re prone to make lots of lemonade, you could consider that the rise of fundamentalist Christians to political prominence in the last few years in the USA has served to make the interrelationship of politics and religion clearer not only in our own time, but historically for at least the last 5000 years in the West, as well as in the Middle East. Today in the academy, feminist/women studies professors are more likely to acknowledge the political component of religions and the role that Abrahamic religious doctrines have played in the sociopolitical repression of women.

In Christianity now, while some point out that in mainstream churches they are often fighting the same battles they thought settled decades ago , in a few instances, in both Judaism and Christianity, groups are tiptoeing towards Goddess. For example, in a Lutheran Church, a Goddess Rosary is recited on a regular basis. And a Jewish group mentored by a rabbi, has started training priestesses honoring the Shekhinah.

Have you noticed any trends I missed?

TAGS:life news spiritual feminism Goddess women and religion Goddess Spirituality

Events Coil: July 11-Aug. 31

As far as we know, all events we list are open functions; but some may be limited to women or to adults. Please check the websites for group policies. If no country is given, the event is in the USA. All times are local. Events lasting more than 1 day are bolded. When listing events for the same date, we have tried to list those occurring first, taking into account time zone differences. If there is a difference between our listings and the listings on the web page linked to, assume their web page is correct, as it may have changed since we listed from it. The next Events Coil is planned for mid-August and will include events listed here that haven't yet happened, plus new events through the end of September. If you have an event you want listed, please leave info a comment. See the end of this Coil for what info we need for listings.

July 11, 7 p.m. Discussion of Goddess Spirituality with Rachel Pollack, Womenspace, Brisbane AUSTRALIA

July 13, 11 a.m. Goddess Service, "Hina"; guest priestess Jeanette Lacey, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

July 18, gather 7 p.m., ritual 7:30 p.m. Full Moon ritual, Temple of Goddess Spirituality Dedicated to Sekhmet, Indian Springs NV

July 17, gather 7:30 p.m. "Celebrate Artemis," Daughters of the Goddess (Dianic), San Francisco Bay Area, CA

July 18, pre-ritual session 7 p.m.; ritual 7:30 p.m.Full Moon, Temple of Sacred Arts and Oakly Circle of SCUU, Germantown MD

July 19, 7:30 p.m. Lunar Lammas: "Healing Our Wounded Mother" with Sister of Avalon Ellie Hull, Glastonbury Goddess Temple, Glastonbury ENGLAND

July 20, 11 a.m. "Goddess Service, "Scathach"; guest priestess Erin Huey, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

July 26, 7:30 p.m., Moon Lodge Women's Circle, with Priestess of Avalon and doula Katinka Soetens, Glastonbury Goddess Temple, Glastonbury ENGLAND

July 27, 11 a.m. Goddess Service, "Huchi"; guest priestess Lyena Strelkoff on "Creative Destruction, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

July 29, 7:30 p.m. Lammas Ceremony, Glastonbury Goddess Temple, Glastonbury ENGLAND

July 30 - Aug. 3, Glastonbury Goddess Conference, this year celebrating the Maiden Goddess (with fringe events July 29- Aug. 4); many circles, rituals, ceremonies, art exhibits, and presentations by (in likely order of appearance) Anique Radiant Heart, Katinka Soetens, Wendy Andrews, Susun Weed, Kellianna, Starhawk, Alisha Dancing Tree, Corry Gott, Heide Goettner-Abendroth, Cecile Keller, Heritra Crecraft, Janet Childs, Lydia Lite, Oshia Drury, Mike Jones, Kathy Jones, Jocelyn Chaplin, Jacqui Woodward-Smith, Julie Felix, Ava Park, Lady Olivia Durden Robertson, Helen Anthony, Roz Bound, Vixen Dreamwalker and probably others. With Goddess Procession Sunday morning through the streets of Glastonbury to the Chalice Well and the top of the Tor, Glastonbury ENGLAND

Aug. 1-3, Green Spirit, including Lughnassad Celebration, Circle Sanctuary Nature Preserve, near Barneveld WI

Aug. 1, 7 p.m., Lammas ritual, Temple of the Sacred Arts, Germantown MD

Aug. 1, gather 7 p.m., ritual 7:30 p.m. Lammas, Temple of Goddess Spirituality Dedicated to Sekhmet, Indian Springs, NV

Aug. 2-3, "Crossing Stony Ground" with Starhawk, Kalia e. V., Munchen (Munich) DEUTSCHLAND

Aug. 2-9, 15th Annual Spiral Heart Witchcamp (Reclaiming), Theme: Lilitu (Lilith), Charles Town WVA

Aug. 2, 2-4 p.m. New Moon Healing, Glastonbury Goddess Temple, Glastonbury ENGLAND

Aug. 2, gather Noon, ritual 1 p.m. Lammas (Reclaiming) Golden Gate Park, San Francisco CA

Aug. 2, gather 6 p.m., ritual 7 p.m. Temple Holy Day: Lammas, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 2, time tba, "Celebrate Lammas and Arianrhod," Daughters of the Goddess (Dianic), San Francisco Bay Area CA

Aug. 3, 11 a.m., Goddess Service: Fornax, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 5, 7:30 p.m., The Craft Connection, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 9, 6 p.m. Imbolc/Early Spring Ritual, PaGaian Moon Court, Blue Mountains AUSTRALIA

Aug. 10 11 a.m. Goddess Service: Anu and Auge with Temple member Candy Wilder, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 16, 7 p.m. Full Moon Drumming, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 16, gather 7 p.m., ritual 7:30 p.m. Full Moon Ritual, Temple of Goddess Spirituality Dedicated to Sekhmet, Indian Springs NV

Aug. 17, 11 a.m., Goddess Service: Olwen, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 23, 7 p.m. Dark Moon ritual, Temple of the Sacred Arts, Germantown MD

Aug. 24, 11 a.m., Goddess Service: Damora, with guest priestess Marguerite Kusuhar, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 30, 7 p.m. Wildwoman Drumming: New Moon, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Aug. 31, 2-4 p.m., New Moon Healing, Glastonbury Goddess Temple, Glastonbury ENGLAND

Aug. 31, 11 a.m. Goddess Service: Baba Yaga, with Guest Priestess Rabbit, Goddess Temple of Orange County, Irvine CA

Ongoing

Australia
Canberra, 10 a.m.most Saturday mornings, Meditation. The Goddess Shrine, Temple of Lunation Magick
Perth (White Gum Valley): Mondays, 17:30, Chalice Ceremony, Daughters of Ishtar.

Canada
Sudbury: 1st Friday (Sept.-June) 7:30 p.m., Sudbury Women's Circle.
Hamilton: Saturdays, 4-6 p.m. Open Classes ; gather 6:30-7 p.m. Open Circles , Hamilton Temple, Wiccan Church of Canada.

Sweden
Soderhamn, Mondays, 7-9 p.m., meditation prayer, conversation, Gudinne Templet.

USA
Arlington VA: 3rd Sunday of month, gather 12:45 p.m., ritual 1 p.m. Moonfire CUUPS. style="color:#6600cc;">
Baltimore MD: Sundays 10 a.m., Rites of Cafeina, Cedar Light Grove (ADF)
Canton CT: Sundays, 10:30 a.m. Services, Women's Temple: In Her Name

Geyersville CA: Sunday Services 2-4 p.m. Temple of Isis
Houston TX: Sundays, 10 a.m. Magdalene Community, Rothko Chapel; 1st &3rd Fridays at Noon, Group studying Gospel of Mary, Brigid's Place, Christ Church Cathedral.
Irvine CA: Sunday Services: 1st Service at 9:30 a.m. inward, meditative; 2nd service at 11 a.m., dancing, drumming, singing; see dates for guest speakers. Goddess Temple of Orange County,
Rockville MD: night before new moon, Dark Moon Book Group, Spiral Heart (Reclaiming).
San Francisco CA: Wednesdays, Christian Goddess Rosary, Ebenezer Lutheran Church; 1st Fridays, evenings at various locations, Woman's Spirituality group.
San Francisco CA: New Moon and Full Moon observances, Maa Batakali Cultural Mission.
St. Sandy UT: second Saturday of each month, 4:30 p.m., Isis Devotionals, Iseum of Muth/Lyceum of Auset and Heru em Aakhuti
Washington DC: 2nd Sunday of month; gather Noon, ritual 12:15 p.m. , National Arboretum, Becoming DC.
West Concord MA: 1st Monday, 7-9 p.m. Women's Circles; other ongoing groups include Demeter & Persephone's Circle for mothers and daughters; Council of Mother Bears; Menopause As Spiritual Journey; Menarche, for mothers and Daughter, at Women's Well.

We'll be happy to add your Goddess and spiritual feminist events (and those you know about that are open to the public) no matter where in the world they are. Leave a comment with your event, giving: Name of event, sponsoring organization (if any), town, date, time (if known), and, required: url of website where person can get more info (no pdf pages). (Do NOT give street addresses, phone numbers or email addresses. People should go to the website to get that info.) We plan to publish an Events Coil every month.

A Gift from Australia

Thanks to Glenys Livingstone and others at PaGaian' Cosmology's Moon Court in Australia for sharing this video on You Tube of their Winter Solstice Celebration, "Triple Spiral@ Bru-na-BigTree," as it occurred on June 21, 2008. Don't miss Glenys' beautiful words, and the lovely camera work by Taffy Seaborne. If the pic doesn't show up on your screen, go to
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Di7j1E2Z3Mo