Rev. Richard Ravish

by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen

We are saddened by the news that our long-time friend Richard Ravish died in Salem Massachusetts on Saturday morning 9/15 at the age of 59. It is a true loss to many of us and we send our love and condolences to his wife Gypsy, his daughter Asherah and his stepdaughter Kitoto.

 

Richard and his wife Gypsy (Amy), who Andras and I handfasted many, many years ago, have been leaders in the Salem Wiccan and occult communities for 30 years. Richard was a Wiccan high priest – the Magus of the Temple of Nine Wells ATC, a public congregation in Salem and high priest of the coven of Akhelarre.  He was a Freemason, Thelmic and Enochian magician, a Rosicrucian and a Hermetic initiate. He lived fully out of his spiritual practice and gave generously of himself to many as teacher, priest and chaplain.   

 

Richard was a designer of magical tools, was proprietor of the store, Nu Aeon, creator of the gallery Cosmic Connection – both in Salem, and together he and Gypsy were the owners of White Light Pentacles/Sacred Spirit Products Inc.

 

May his spirit fly free. May his family and loved ones find peace, in time.

Blessings to all.

 

You can find a full obituary and memorial details here at Salem News.

Thank you all for helping

by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen

It has been another busy year for EarthSpirit, as we have consolidated and expanded our important work in all branches of activity -- thanks, in large part, to many dedicated community members who have made contributions of their time, expertise, goods and funds to support the work of the organization. We are very grateful; we could not do it all without you.

In over thirty years of existence, EarthSpirit has been able to grow into one of the largest pagan organizations in the US, supporting its members with programs and actively engaging in the world on many levels to create change. We’ve done a lot, and we look forward to doing more.

One of the original intentions of EarthSpirit was to build spiritual community through connections. Over the years this has always meant local and regional celebrations and gatherings, publications, performances and classes. By offering programs and leading rituals for other organizations, we build relationships regionally and around the country. Increasingly, EarthSpirit has reached out to its international members to assist in developing community in Europe and Central and South America. We hope to further develop and deepen these efforts in the coming year.

Our web site, www.earthspirit.com, continues to be an entry-point for newcomers as well as a resource for long-time members. Our recent addition of EarthSpirit Voices (earthspiritcommunity.blogspot.com) has brought sharing and discussion of spiritual practice into our presence on the Web. We look forward to expanding and improving both of these important communication vehicles in the near future.

In the early 1980s we realized that pagans, given the opportunity, could make meaningful contributions to the interfaith dialogues that were developing both nationally and globally, and that we could also benefit greatly from participation in such forums. Since that time, EarthSpirit has played a major role in helping paganism attain a much greater level of credibility and respect within the interreligious movement. The work that EarthSpirit director, Andras Corban Arthen, has been doing through his service on the board of trustees of the Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions (CPWR) has been growing. Last November, Andras was sent by the CPWR to Guadalajara, Mexico, as part of the site committee which evaluated that city’s bid to host the 2014 Parliament. While there, he also had the opportunity to meet with many local pagans as well as several indigenous leaders.

In February, Andras went to Chicago to help choose the host city for the 2014 Parliament, which will be Brussels, Belgium. In early May, he was sent back to Guadalajara along with CPWR executive director Dirk Ficca to explore ways to maintain a working relationship with the local group that organized that city’s bid, including a collaboration to develop an interreligious initiative throughout Latin America. As a result of that trip, Andras was asked to serve as the CPWR’s liaison with the Guadalajara group. In addition, Andras was elected again to the CPWR’s executive committee, and was asked to oversee the Parliament’s Ambassadors program, which coordinates several hundred Parliament supporters from all over the world.

The ‘Indians’ of Old Europe, the presentation that Andras has been offering in recent years which places the surviving pagan traditions in the context of Indigenous European spirituality, has been receiving a great deal of favorable attention throughout the interfaith movement, with lots of people telling him how it’s helped them to see paganism in a different light and to take it much more seriously. As a result, he has been receiving many invitations to speak at interfaith and academic events in the U.S. and abroad, including two next year in India and Denmark. Unfortunately, those invitations rarely cover all of the expenses involved, so the only way he is able to attend is through the support and generosity of our community.

EarthSpirit has been committed to young people since the outset. Without engaging and including youth, any community becomes unsustainable. Our mentoring programs, Rites of Passage ceremonies and ongoing activities such as EarthSpirit PeaceJam help those growing up within our community learn from the experience of elders while finding their own voices and means of expression. In the coming year we look forward to continuing and expanding our support for these programs.

In 2011, thanks to our generous donors, we have replaced our sluggish and undependable office computers with new Dells that actually work reliably. What a difference it makes for our office volunteers! We have also begun work to completely revamp our database system using expert volunteers to develop and create a configuration that will greatly improve our ability to stay connected with members across the US and around the world.

As you might imagine, all of this work, in so many areas, requires a significant amount of money to sustain it. Despite the struggling economy over the past few years, our community has been very generous. We have consistently received contributions large and small -- both in the mail and at the auction at Rites of Spring. We appreciate every single one. Please consider increasing your donation to EarthSpirit this year to help us move quickly toward our goals.

We count on you to be a part of the web that holds us together on so many levels. Thank you all for helping EarthSpirit to continue moving forward!

Deirdre Pulgram Arthen, Executive Director

Boston Gay Pride Interfaith Service

by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen

This weekend I was invited to participate in the Boston Gay Pride Interfaith Service. It took place at the Old South Church in Copley Square right before the parade on Saturday morning. It was wonderful to be a part of what turned out to be an inspiring service on many levels and I was heartily welcomed into the group of clergy which included Buddhist, Protestant, Jewish, Catholic, Muslim and Yoruba representation -- in addition to the Pagan. I look forward to having the opportunity soon to connect more closely with the organizing committee for this service and, perhaps, to finding some EarthSpirit members who would like to coordinate an EarthSpirit presence at Pride events around the state next year.

My part of the service was the "Call to Worship" which happens at the beginning of a Christian service as a transition into the focused spiritual part of the service after the welcoming remarks and announcements. The theme of the entire Pride week celebration was "no more and no less." Here is the text of my remarks:

Good morning,

We come together to begin this very festive day with a moment of reflection on, and celebration of, our personal connections with spirit, We do this here in a community of others for whom that spiritual connection is also an important part of life. Look around you and see the diversity of who we are here – We come from many backgrounds, from many spiritual traditions, we have different temperaments, different lifestyles and different perspectives. But at the root of it all, what we share in common is our humanity and, through that, our own special place in the web of creation.

In that web of life are the trees, the stars, the rocks, the rivers, the birds, the grasses on the plains, the thundering waves of the ocean, the insects in your garden, the deer and the coyotes in the forest, the mist rising at dawn. What wonder we can know when we open and experience the majesty of each of these! And what wonder can we know when we see that we are, each of us, no more and no less than any of these beautiful and powerful aspects of creation. That we are the earth itself.

Many people are inclined, I think, to choose to see themselves as separate from the world, to create an “us and them” divide that either values humans as the owners of a world where everything is created especially for our own use, or to denigrate our role to that of a cancer – eating away at our fragile eco-system and destroying our home.

While it is undoubtedly true that we humans have extraordinary capacities to create and to destroy, and that with that capacity comes an obligation to be conscious of our actions and take responsibility for them, as long as we keep viewing ourselves separate from the web we will not know how to keep it intact. We will not know the depth of the ways that our tugging on one strand affects the rest.

My experience has been that when I am able to let go of my assumptions, to allow myself to move away from my rational, judgmental brain and into my heart and spirit - to find that place in this sacred web where I belong, that place where I am one with the very soul of the Earth and the sky and all the beings in them, I can touch the mystery I am a part of, and find direction and peace.

I invite you to join me now in a call and response to open ourselves deeply to the sacred of which we are a part - no more, and no less than any other. My daughter, Isobel, will sing the response part with you – the words are simply “I am the Earth”

We then sang my chant "I am the Earth" together as a call and response.

(I was followed by a Muslim woman who read a scripture from the Koran and then by a Yoruba practitioner who led us all in a drum blessing.)

[Photos by Moira Ashleigh]

Coming Together for All Beings of the Earth

by Deirdre Arthen

Dear friends, Just a reminder that the deadline for registering for Rites of Spring is coming up very soon - May 15! Don't miss the warmth of the fire and the magic of community on the mountain. You can find all you need to register at: http://www.earthspirit.com/ros/rosb.html

I also wanted to remind you that the first Sacred Land Open House at Glenwood is taking place this Sunday, May 9. These afternoon events in western Massachusetts are free, include a tour of the land, and this week there are two programs to choose from - Qi Kong with Jonathan Kapsten, and Deep Peace - a Mother's Day peace ritual for women. You can find out more at: http://www.earthspirit.com/openhouse/index.html

On a more somber note - as we celebrate All Beings of the Earth at Rites of Spring this year, many of us are feeling a strong desire to join in an effort to send protective and peaceful energy to all the beings living in the area of the Gulf of Mexico who are so threatened by the man-made disaster occurring there. This weekend, many EarthSpirit members will be at Glenwood for one reason or another and we are planning a simple and focused working with that intention. We invite you to join us from wherever you are.

We will place a stone and a natural sponge in the center of our labyrinth. Each person who wants to participate will follow the path to the center with the clean sea-water of the Gulf in mind, quietly singing the following chant: Holy water, Healing Water, Life-bringer, Water flow, and building power of intent. (I wrote the chant, which is on MotherTongue's Weaving the Web of Life cd, to be used to reawaken us to the sacred nature of water, since I feel that it is largely because humans do not acknowledge the sanctity of water that we abuse it and pollute it.) Once in the center, we will hold the two objects and fill them with our intention - the stone to carry our protection, and the sponge to absorb the damage that is already being done.

At the end of the weekend we will send both the stone and the sponge to EarthSpirit members in Louisiana, so that they can put them into the water and complete the working.

If you are at a distance, but would also like to participate, you can either focus your intention on the objects here at Glenwood that will be travelling south, or you can fill your own objects and put them in a natural water source near your home. All water is connected on this planet, and whether you place a stone in the stream behind your house or in the reservoir in the next town, your intention will flow to where it is needed.

We would love for you to tell us about your experience with this, right here on EarthSpirit Voices. The photo accompanying this post shows the labyrinth at Glenwood, to help make your focus easier if you're joining us from afar.

Celebrating Spring and honoring those with whom we share this sacred Earth!
Deirdre Arthen

The Lost World of Old Europe

by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen

Last week while I was in New York I visited this wonderful exhibition at the NYU Institute for the Study of the Ancient World. The gallery, which is very near the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the upper east side, contains two full rooms of stunning female figurines and beautifully painted pots from between 5000 and 4000 BC in Central Europe. This collection has never been in the US before and is really worth a visit. Even if you can't get there, the web site, which has lots of information and photos, is worth visiting and the book that accompanies the exhibit is wonderful. Just wanted to pass along the recommendation!

From the exhibition website: "The Lost World of Old Europe brings to the United States for the first time more than 160 objects recovered by archaeologists from the graves, towns, and villages of Old Europe, a cycle of related cultures that achieved a precocious peak of sophistication and creativity in what is now southeastern Europe between 5000 and 4000 BC, and then mysteriously collapsed by 3500 BC. Long before Egypt or Mesopotamia rose to an equivalent level of achievement, Old Europe was among the most sophisticated places that humans inhabited. Some of its towns grew to city-like sizes. Potters developed striking designs, and the ubiquitous goddess figurines found in houses and shrines have triggered intense debates about women’s roles in Old European society. Old European copper-smiths were, in their day, the most advanced metal artisans in the world. Their intense interest in acquiring copper, gold, Aegean shells, and other rare valuables created networks of negotiation that reached surprisingly far, permitting some of their chiefs to be buried with pounds of gold and copper in funerals without parallel in the Near East or Egypt at the time. The exhibition, arranged through loan agreements with 20 museums in three countries (Romania, The Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Moldova), brings the exuberant art, enigmatic goddess cults, and precocious metal ornaments and weapons of Old Europe to American audiences."

For more information about the exhibit location and hours: http://www.nyu.edu/isaw/exhibitions.htm

For detailed information about the contents of the exhibit: http://www.nyu.edu/isaw/exhibitions/oldeurope/

(photo of the Thinker from the introduction to the exhibit)

Pagan Coalition Calls for Religious Freedom in California Case

The EarthSpirit Community is part of a coalition of national Pagan and Nature-centered religious organizations which has released a letter calling for religious freedom in a California court case. The case, which has attracted national attention, is being waged over whether California should hire prison chaplains from outside five “state approved” faiths: Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and Native American.

In an amicus brief, the conservative Christian group WallBuilders, Inc. called on the courts to reject the case of Rev. Patrick McCollum, a Pagan chaplain and long-time EarthSpirit friend, arguing that Paganism is a “second tier” religion and therefore not subject to the protections of the First Amendment.


Our Freedom: A National Pagan Civil Rights Organization rejects the state’s claims in general and the WallBuilders, Inc. amicus in particular. Our Freedom states that Pagan inmates have requirements and needs comparable to those of the five faiths currently being served. Our Freedom stands in the promise of our nation’s Constitution and its guarantee of religious freedom.

Included in Pagan inmates’ needs are: access to paid Pagan chaplains to facilitate regularly scheduled religious services; provision of spiritual guidance and counseling support; facilitation of Pagan rites of passage and liturgical needs; and service as intermediaries between Pagan inmates and correctional administrators and staff to educate about Pagan religious needs or requirements of Pagans.

[For further information and links, see the bottom of this post.]

The following letter was sent to the Office of the Governor of California; WallBuilders, Inc.; Clerk of Court, United States District Court, Northern District of California; and Attorney Caroline Mitchell of Jones Day, Attorneys for Plaintiffs.

To Whom It May Concern:

We, the undersigned, are a widely divergent group of American citizens. We hail from varied economic strata, educational backgrounds, ethnic groups, and cultural experiences. We are taxpaying citizens of this country, and some of us have served in uniform. Members of our religious community have died in that uniform, protecting this nation, its constitution, and all that it stands for.

Haiti needs relief

As we know, we are deeply connected to all beings and the fortunes or misfortunes of one affects us all.

The current disaster in Haiti is beyond comprehension - hundreds of thousands homeless, injured, orphaned or dead. An entire crowded and already destitute city destroyed. In our warm homes here, for which we are so grateful, we can all reach out now with compassion and generosity, sending practical help along with our energy and prayers to the many victims of this disaster.

I encourage everyone reading this to take just a few moments to open your hearts to the Haitian people and then to take action. Even a small contribution will join with others to make a difference.

You can do your own research, but I found a couple of easy ways to donate quickly with your cell phone:

Yele Haiti: donate $5 by texting “Yele” to 501501, which will automatically donate $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund (it will be charged to your cell phone bill).

American Red Cross: Send a $10 Donation by Texting ‘Haiti’ to 90999.

You can find out how to do more through some of the many agencies working to get aid to Haiti at:

  http://edition.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2007/impact/

  http://www.google.com/relief/haitiearthquake/index.html

  http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=1004


sent with love,

Deirdre Arthen

Twilight Covening 2009 Visioning Ritual

by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen

Returning from this year's Twilight Covening, I am struck once again by the power in a community working ritually together on a deep level. Each year we create a spiritual bridge together that brings us from the season of summer exuberance and brightness into the dark time of introspection and germination. The effect of this special and potent time stays with me all through the winter.

This year's Visioning Ritual on Sunday was about the essence of fire itself, its many aspects and our relationship with it, as the humans that we are. It was about getting outside of our assumptions and symbolic minds and approaching a natural and elemental force - open and listening. It was a journey to learn, to shift and to gain a new companion in our continuing travels through our spiritual life. Here is the story that that was told to begin the journey. May it inspire you to travel further.

TWILIGHT COVENING 2009     VISIONING RITUAL STORY
Deirdre Pulgram Arthen, October 11, 2009

You are embarking on a journey to find a vision; to seek a path to follow into the winter.

Let me tell you a story about someone who was on a similar journey not so long ago.

A young man left home to seek a future for himself.  He knew it was time, though he had no particular goal in mind.  He just knew that if he looked hard enough he would find his way. So he wandered for months and had many wonderful adventures, but as the winds grew colder and the nights grew longer, he began to feel afraid that he would be pulled along into the cold dark time with no direction or path.

The stranger he met on the road one day appeared old and quiet. They traveled along together for a while side by side, and then the young traveler asked the wise woman, for that is who she was,

"What am I to do? The winter is coming and I am travelling without direction.  How will I know which path to chose?  How will I find my way?"

"Fire is the key", she answered.  "Fire transforms.  You give fire one thing; it gives you back something else.  You must get to know fire, for if you do, fire can offer light to show you a path to chose and the power to follow it".

"Know fire?  I lived with fire my whole life; I already know fire" the young traveler responded.

"No", the wise woman said.  "What you have is assumptions about what you do or do not do with fire.  What you have is a head full of stories about what fire "means".  Leave these assumptions and stories behind, and let yourself gain a new companion on your journey.  Fire is not an easy companion, but it is a strong ally.  It is obvious that we are made of earth and air and water, getting to know the fire itself brings us closer to knowing the fire within".

And with that, she turned and walked away.

Not really understanding exactly what the wise woman meant about "knowing" the fire, the young traveler decided to see what he could find out about what it meant to know fire.  He went to the first fire he found and joined the crowd around it; he listened and he watched.  Eventually, he came to do as the people around that fire were doing, and after a short time said to himself,

"Ah, now I see, now I know fire and can ask for its help finding my way".

But the fire answered, "No, there is much more, seek another fire."

So he did.  He traveled for a time and found people gathered around another fire, and he tried to do as they did and come to know the fire.  Again, after a short time he said to himself,

"Ah, now I really know fire" to which the fire responded "No, there is much more, seek another fire".

And so the young traveler did, fire after fire, taking a bit of knowing from each one, until one day he encountered a fire that spoke to him first!

"I recognize you", the fire said.  "You have seen me in many forms, and I have seen you at those times as well.  If you work with me now, and bring all that you have learned, I will help you find the path to take."

And so the young traveler approached that fire with an open heart, bringing all the lessons he had learned, and he began to talk with and listen to and dance with and make offerings to the fire.  In its turn, the fire offered him its light, its flickering visions, and the power to act on what he saw.

Together, they began to create a vision and find the direction for the next step on the traveler's path.

[photos by Robbi Packard and by Dave Anderson]

Western Massachusetts Pagan Pride Day

by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen
photo by Michael Whitehouse

A number of EarthSpirit folks from the area spent yesterday at the Western Mass. Pagan Pride event. Thanks to Cassie Olewinski, whose hard work organizing was quite evident, the day was a great success overall. The EarthSpirit Community had been asked to lead the ritual this year and MotherTongue was also asked to perform so, since we had an information table there too, it was a very full day.

For the morning performance we intertwined group choral pieces with solos by Sarah Stockwell Arthen and Andras Corban Arthen. The mix was a good one, it went beautifully and we were well received - though it is always difficult to play for an audience that is milling about, and you kind of wonder if anyone is really listening. It’s certainly not the best venue for quiet or subtle songs, but we did hear appreciatively from people afterwards.

The afternoon ritual was the part that I found provocative in a lasting sort of way. We began with some of our community drummers playing to gather some energy and people in the area for the ritual. Again I was grateful to have a significant group of EarthSpirit Community members there, because many of the attendees seemed reticent about joining in, and together we created critical mass to get things moving. (Someone later said that the rituals in past years have been more demonstrative than participatory.) We began chanting and spiraling in to create a circle and did collect many people, but a portion of them still remained outside, even when invited in. It was a very participatory ritual including several chants, collective knot work and another spiral dance – a pretty typical EarthSpirit style ritual with an emphasis on accessibility for all and connection among the people there and with the natural world around us. The work of the ritual was about each person taking responsibility for her or his side of the relationships in their life – relationships with self, other people, the community and the web of creation - seeing what it is that we each need to do to hold our relationships with integrity and binding ourselves to do so. It was a good piece of work and it felt good as we did it together. We ended the ritual with the recognition that integrity in our relationships can bring us inner peace and, from that, help to create outer peace in the world that we are a part of. We sent out our wishes for that peace.

What lingers with me now is the recognition that came once again as we sang and danced together in that little green patch of earth near the highway, that many people in the greater pagan community – even those who have been involved for years - have not had much experience of that kind of ritual. Many people who consider themselves pagans gather more often indoors and follow a prescribed and scripted ritual when they celebrate their spirituality. To be invited to open up to the land that we were on and to the beings there, to feel our connections with each other and with the earth, to reach inside and find something there waiting to speak out – these are all aspects of ritual that I take for granted at this point but which were surprising and especially moving for some of the people who came up to me afterwards.

Today, in the September sunshine, I feel especially blessed and filled by the spiritual community that we have within EarthSpirit and by the traditions that we have preserved, reclaimed, brought together, developed and shared over these 30 years. It is wonderful to me when I watch people who celebrate and assume that this is the way that it has always been – because that shows me the depth to which the work has taken root. And it is also wonderful when I am with people experiencing these ways for the first time and they tell me that they will never forget that moment – because I am always amazed at their willingness to be so open and I am reminded of the importance of what we are doing together.

EarthSpirit and The Parliament of the World's Religions, part 1

by Deirdre Pulgram Arthen

A little history

"The Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions was created to cultivate harmony among the world's religious and spiritual communities and foster their engagement with the world and its guiding institutions in order to achieve a just, peaceful and sustainable world." (www.parliamentofreligions.org)

In 1893 the first global interfaith conference in the United Sates was held in Chicago, and in 1993, as a centennial marker, the CPWR held its first modern parliament event. Members of the EarthSpirit Community attended that first Parliament where we offered presentations and performances, helped to organize a large full moon ritual in Grant Park, and Deborah Ann Light, a joint representative for EarthSpirit, Circle Sanctuary and Covenant of the Goddess signed the document "Toward a Global Ethic," which you can see on the Parliament's web site. (TowardsAGlobalEthic.pdf or here) It was a remarkable experience, and those of us who went brought back both a new awareness and appreciation of the variety and depth of spiritual practices and traditions around the world, and a sense of what the Earth-based traditions such as ours have to bring to the global interfaith conversation.

In 1999 the Parliament was held in Cape Town, South Africa, and again EarthSpirit was represented. Susan Curewitz Arthen and I organized a joint information table for U.S. pagan organizations and also offered presentations. Before the Parliament itself, I was also involved in discussions with the Council in Chicago which led to the crafting of a document titled "A Call to our Guiding Institutions," addressed to religion, business, government, media and education, and which was presented and endorsed at the Parliament itself. (CalltoGuidingInstitutions.pdf or here)

In 2004 the Parliament was held in Barcelona, Spain, and EarthSpirit was again represented. MotherTongue traveled to Spain to perform, and members of EarthSpirit offered workshops and rituals and organized a shared information table. For several years prior to this event, Andras Corban Arthen had been developing connections with pagans throughout Spain, and particularly in Barcelona, so we were able to include many of them in various Parliament events and forged deeper friendships and connections which continue to this day. Two Spanish pagan groups have specifically used EarthSpirit as a model in developing their own organizations.

Andras and I were invited to be a part of the Assembly of Religious and Spiritual Leaders that year, and as such, we participated along with 200 other international delegates in in-depth conversations about issues such as access to clean water, equal rights for women, religious violence, and other critical concerns facing the world. From these conversations and others like them throughout the event, participants were encouraged to make commitments to taking action in their local communities.

In 2006 Andras was elected to the Board of Trustees of the CPWR and has been an active member there ever since. In 2007, he represented the Indigenous European Traditions on behalf of the Parliament at the Universal Forum of Cultures in Monterrey, Mexico, where he offered workshops and participated in rituals with members of the local indigenous communities. (http://spiritofthearth.blogspot.com/ )

In preparation for the 2009 Parliament, he has been a member of the Indigenous Task Force, working with a small group to contact and recruit leaders of indigenous spiritual traditions from around the world to offer special presentations at this year’s event. His focus has been especially on bringing in practitioners from South America and Europe. He has also been a part of the Program Committee, reviewing many of the thousands of program proposals that have been submitted, to help create the best possible content for the Parliament. Andras has also been building connections with pagans from Australia, and especially from Melbourne, where the Parliament is taking place.

This December, nine members of the EarthSpirit Community (so far) will travel 'down under' and join Andras to participate in the interfaith conversations, and offer workshops and rituals. We will host our own EarthSpirit information table and will collaborate in creating joint programs with others from earth-centered traditions. We are especially looking forward to connecting with members of the Australian pagan community.

We are very grateful to the members of EarthSpirit who have been so generous in their financial support of our interfaith work, especially over the last two years. While every person attending each of these Parliaments has made a considerable personal investment in order to be there, your donations have enabled the organization to be fully engaged in an ongoing international dialogue among deeply spiritual people committed to building a sustainable future. We have found we have a lot to learn and a lot to offer.

Coming soon:

More information about EarthSpirit's participation in this year's Parliament, and an attempt to answer the question, "So what does our community get out of all of this interfaith work?”

If you are a member of EarthSpirit and are interested in coming to the Parliament in Australia, you can get in touch with me: deirdre@earthspirit.com to talk about what we have planned.

Sparks and Ripples at Rites of Spring

by Deirdre Arthen


This year at Rites of Spring, EarthSpirit's largest annual gathering ( www.earthspirit.com/ros/index.html ), we embarked on what will doubtless become a tradition there - an exploration of how our community's spirituality manifests in the world. We called it "Sparks of Inspiration, Ripples of Action, Exploring How We Walk in the World". We all come to the EarthSpirit Community from different places and paths, but we all share the belief that the Earth is sacred so we wanted to look at the many ways we live that belief in our day-to-day lives. The ways may be large and dramatic, or small and simple; public and visible, or private and subtle, and together we make a vibrant mosaic, a beautiful pattern of spirited and spiritual engagement with the world.

To make the patterns visible, we invited all Rites of Spring participants to share their particular part of the mosaic - any actions that have been inspired by their spirituality or connection to the Earth, whether those be in the community, through creativity, for the Earth directly, or in the lives of others - by creating a page, including a description of what they are doing, to add to an actual mosaic on the wall of the Dining Hall. It was wonderful to see how many different ways people are living their spirituality. We read about permaculture and green building, about assisting with births and deaths, about living off the grid, about working with children and working with local communities and about college students planning career paths directly emergent from their spiritual values. The scope was broad and the writing thoughtful. I look forward to sharing some of the specifics with you here soon (after I get permission).

There were several other aspects to "Sparks and Ripples" this year, in addition to the wall mosaic. One was an event on Saturday morning where some very active members of the community, Jimi Two Feathers, Sarah Stockwell-Arthen, Steve Trombulak, ALisa Starkweather, Isobel Arthen and I and some others, spread out on blankets in the merchant Circle to share more about our inspirations and actions in person. The topics ranged from environmental activism, to community planning to service-learning to healing. On Sunday during lunchtime, Sarah Stockwell-Arthen and Isobel Arthen hosted an introductory talk and round-table discussion about sustainability and activism, and several of our community rituals also included some focus on how we manifest our spirituality in the world. (Many thinks to Sarah, Isobel, Stephen, Morwen, Eric and Chris for their work to make this vision a reality at Rites of Spring this year.)

The Web Ritual, in particular, was very meaningful as people first made commitments to taking their own actions in the world and then as so many stepped forward to hold the strands of the web that make our own community - strands of communication, teaching our children, creating music and art, writing, growing food, developing earth-friendly technology, maintaining our sacred traditions and more. As small groups held the strands the rest of us wove ourselves into the web with many colored yarn - some even home-spun that day. The resulting structure was not only beautiful, but especially powerful to be with because of the depth of true intention that went into it.

"Sparks and Ripples" is a chance for us to see new aspects of each other and be inspired by the many ways that members of our community take actions that ripple out through the web, far beyond the bounds of Rites of Spring. We look forward to hearing what you have to share. Please drop us a comment and let us be inspired by you too!

Welcome to EarthSpirit Voices

by Andras and Deirdre Arthen

Welcome to EarthSpirit Voices, an interactive blog-journal which will serve as a way for members of the EarthSpirit community to bring the strength and depth of our connections onto the web. We intend this as a place for thoughtful conversation that is available to all for learning and sharing about Earth spirituality and the ways that our practices carry us through our lives.

As we begin, the major posts in the journal will be written by a group of individuals active within EarthSpirit. It will include some "official" postings, such as announcements of events or updates on EarthSpirit activities, but will more often feature thought-provoking articles intended to deepen our community and our spiritual practices. These may include interviews with long-time members of our community; an art gallery based on the Salons held at some of our events; songs or poems and excerpts from works of fiction by EarthSpirit members; articles about specific indigenous European traditions that connect to our current practices; ideas about building meaningful traditions for families with children; articles in response to workshops at Rites of Spring or some of our other gatherings; pieces specifically of interest to young adults, and much more. We hope to explore a variety of topics as broad as the diversity of our community, yet woven together by the shared intention of deepening our understanding and our spiritual connections with one another.

This is not only a place to read articles. Comments are encouraged, and we hope that many good conversations will be generated. We also welcome the submission of articles, art and creative writings. If you are interested in contributing, please write email to voices at earthspirit.com for more specific details. We do ask that comments be connected to what has already been written and that this not be used as a bulletin board to announce non-EarthSpirit-related events, to update the public on your daily life, or to complain about or denigrate others. We reserve the right to moderate comments if needed.