Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Buzz Coil: June 2015

 Some recent posts from blogs on our blogroll (please note, we don't knowingly list posts published elsewhere before being published on the blogs referred to in this post. ):

My Village Witch: On June 22, Byron Ballard, leader of the Mother Grove Goddess Temple in North Carolina, posts a sermon she gave the previous day at the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. Titled, “Midsummer Dreams of Justice and Peace for the UUCSV,” the sermon touches on the murders at Emanuel AME church in South Carolina and previous violence at a UU church in Tennessee, North Carolina politics, and other problems worldwide, as well as thoughts on how to deal with what she calls a “Tower Time.” She also shares how Summer Solstice is celebrated in her community and related European folklore.

Starhawk’s blog: Starhawk’s June 19 post is a response to the “Charleston Massacre”and other racially-motivated violence.

HecateDemeter: Blogger Hecate tells how she celebrated summer solstice in her June 22 post, “Sacrament of the Soil.” In another June 22 post, “Really? Really?,” she begins:
“Do I need, here in the Twenty-First Century, to explain that when a white man shows up spewing bullets and talking about how the “others,” aka African Americans, want to rape 'our' women and take over 'our country,' Patriarchy is at work?”
In her in June 19 post, “Thursday Night Odd Bedfellows Blogging,” she explains why what she calls a “real post” was delayed by the murders in Emmanuel AME Church in South Carolina to tell, in what I consider a “real post,” why she, a Pagan donated to that church.

 

The Wild Hunt: In “Pagan Community Notes” of June 22, Heather Greene includes news of the support by Pagans of the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC including a statement by Cherry Hill Seminary, also located in South Carolina, and the Wild Hunt’s work with SC Pagans.
  
Broomstick Chronicles in her June 4 post, “On*a*Pagan Community Statement on the Environment,” Aline O’Brien (aka Macha NightMare), comments on a statement signed not only by Pagans around the world but also by Buddhists, Anglicans, UUs, CRs, African Diaspora, Heathens, and interfaith colleagues.” She goes on to write about Pagans who said they felt they couldn’t sign the statement because they aren’t public about their Paganism. She quotes a blessing by Paula Walowitz and goes on to write:
“We are no better or worse Pagan for choosing a private spiritual life. That said, our ecosystems are shared; thus, I see it as the obligation of each of us to do whatever we can to maintain its sustainability and viability. Recycling, voting Green, donating are all good, but in the bigger picture they don't make a huge difference. Not any more than this remarkable statement makes without follow-up in the real world.
“Signing a document that states things you agree with is not ‘doing public pagan stuff.’  What it is, however, is standing with others in the face of a dire situation, and standing together makes for a stronger force....No one's personal spirituality is compromised in the least when she signs a document that serves the entire planet.”

The statement can be found at ecopagan.com. At this writing there are 6459 signers. Stating your religious/spiritual affiliation is optional.

The Motherhouse of the Goddess: M. Isidora Forrest has two posts about the Goddess Isis on this blog this month: “The Goddess Isis and the Waters” on June 20, and “Offering to Isis,” on June 13. I am glad to mention these here, not only because they are fine posts, but because this is a time when we need to remember who the real Isis is.
 
Branches Up, Roots Down: In her June 13 post, “A Bowl of Cherries,” Deborah Oak writes about the relevance of her Paganism and a farmers market in coping with a friend’s illness.

Mythology Matters: In a June 19 post, “Summer Solstice Mythology: Midsummer Night,” Arthur George gives an extensive history of this celebration especially in Europe and including the influence of Christian holidays.

WoodsPriestess: Blogger Molly’s June 17 post, “Summer Solstice Imprint Necklaces,” starts with a short poem, then reflects on summer and gives instructions for making a necklace that may give you a message.

Hearth Moon Rising's blog: What started out as a four-part series on “The Mathematical Priestess,” with the first part posted on May 22 (see May Buzz Coil), has grown to a five-part series, the last of which was posted on June 19. Part II, about mathematical systems in Mesopotamia, posted on May 29. Part III, about Greek mathematics, posted on June 5. Part IV which includes an announcement that this will be a five-part series, is about Alexandria, Egypt and posted on June 12. Part V is about the Renaissance and Enlightenment. Towards the end of this post, Hearth Moon tackles the question of the relationship between metaphysics and science. She recalls trying to follow the advice of a male physicist who told her that when dealing with metaphysics one should avoid scientific language because “science and metaphysics are two different things.” She writes that after trying to follow his advice,
 “I now believe that by putting a firewall between science and the occult what we have is bad science and bad magic, including flaws in the predictive sciences.”
All parts with pics.

Radical Goddess Thealogy: In her June 5 post, blogger Athana answers the question, “What Would a Goddess Country Look Like?” including social, financial, economic, political, and legal aspects, and including the opinion that, “There’d be no such thing as a police force.”

A Crone Speaks Out: Rev. Cathryn Platine of the Maetreum of Cybele takes issue with a post on the Pantheos Pagan channel in her June 3 post, “Caitlin Jenner as the Goddess? Seriously?”

Annelinde’s World: Annelinde Metzner’s June 15 post, “The world opened,” is a poem about seeing mountain laurel blooming for the first time when she was a child.

Casa della Dea: A prayer for the Goddess Tiamat in Italian, titled  “Preghiera a Tiamat” is the June 6 post by Eilantha Redspring.


Godddess/Spiritual Feminist Blogs

Because of the large number and variety of bloggers and posts on these blogs, we are now suggesting that you visit them and select the posts that interest you most.

Return to Mago: A Goddess-centered blog whose administrator/owner is Helen Hye-Sook Hwang.
Feminism and Religion: Many bloggers from many different religions and paths.
Pagan Square: This blog of many mostly-Pagan paths is sponsored by BBI Media and includes SageWoman blog posts.
 
Editorial Note: I am having problems getting the fonts to be consistent, so please know that if some look bigger than others (or, horrors, are actually different fonts!) it is not my intention. We are not going to spend a lot of time correcting them due to my persisting carpal-tunnel-like fingers (still not properly diagnosed by dr.) Thank you for bearing with me.