Church of the Sacred Moon

On this side of the page you will find the following topics and information:

*DONATIONS

*PAST & UPCOMING EVENTS

*LUNAR RITUALS

*ESBATS

*FELLOWSHIP OF THE SACRED MOON

*MOON SCHOOL

*PAGANS IN RECOVERY

*PAGAN NEWS

*LESSON OF THE WEEK

To make a donation to our organization click the PayPal logo and send your payment to [email protected]

Past & Upcoming Events

YAKIMA COUNTY
PAGAN PRIDE DAY,
2008

Merry Meet!

We are hosting 'Yakima County Pagan Pride Day' in 2008 at 'Sarg Hubbard Park' in Yakima, WA. This will be a major event with lots of vendors, entertainment, open Circles, workshops, children's activities, information, and world renown Pagan authors.

Since we are in the beginning stages of planning the event we will need volunteers to help set things up. We need help with finding vendors, entertainment, and local covens who would like to participate. We also need people to assist with planning.

Remember, this is not a small gathering of Pagans. This is a very large Pagan Pride Day event, which may have as many as 200 to 300 Pagans in attendance.

If you would like to help make our 1st Pagan Pride Day event a huge success, then please contact us at (509) 945-6586. Or, send an email to [email protected]. We will be posting more information here at MySpace.com and at www.sacredmoonchurch.org and www.witchvox.com.

We will update this information as we progress. So, keep checking here at our MySpace page to stay up to date on what is happening. Blessed Be!

Brightest Blessings,
The Rev. Jasper Sparrowhawk
President
Church of the Sacred Moon
Selah, WA

(509) 945-6586)O(

For more information CLICK HERE

3rd ANNUAL BELTANE CELEBRATION

Merry Meet!

On Sunday, May 6th, 2007 we hosted our 3rd Annual 'Beltane Celebration' at Wixon Park in Selah, WA. We had no idea that so many people would show up. For those who left early we apologize for our president's tardiness. He had way too much on his plate and even forgot a few things that a couple of us had to go get so that we could begin the ritual.

The ritual was wonderful (except for the teenagers across the park who were blasting their music to try and annoy us)! Everything went so smoothly that the entire ritual only lasted for a half hour. The Maypole dance was a blast, and the pole looks great! The chief photographer from the Yakima Herald took a heck of a lot of photos and interviewed the coven members one by one. He will be contacting some of us for any questions that he may have about Paganism as he prepares his article for the newspaper. He will also post voice media, information, links, and photos at the Yakima Herald's website. So, keep your eyes open for YOUR photo (assuming that you even knew you were being photographed. lol).

We have posted new photos here at MySpace.com. To view photos of the event CLICK HERE .

We thank you all again for your support and look forward to meeting you all again. For more information keep checking our MySpace page every now and then. We are always updating the information all the time. Blessed Be!

3rd ANNUAL YAKIMA VALLEY LUGHNASADH FESTIVAL

Merry Meet!

On July 29th, 2007 we hosted the ‘3rd Annual Yakima Valley Lughnasadh Festival’ at Randall Park in Yakima, WA. Many Pagans attended and helped make the event successful.The open Circle was wonderful! We even had visitors from outside the Yakima area who made the event even more enjoyable with their presence.We thank all of you for attending and look forward to seeing you all again at future events. CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT . Blessed Be!

Brightest Blessings,
Board of Directors
Church of the Sacred Moon
Selah, WA

)O(

Click Here To View Event

Copywrite © 2007
Church of the Sacred Moon

)O(

Phone: (509) 697-3943

Mailing Address: PO Box 462, Selah, WA 98942

NOTE: The larger events are public events for any who are interested, regardless of religious (or, lack of) affiliation.

For more information please contact us at (509)945-6586, or email us at [email protected], or visit us on the web at www.sacredmoonchurch.org. Blessed Be!

Bright Blessings,
The Rev. Jasper Sparrowhawk
Church of the Sacred Moon
Selah, WA

LUNAR RITUALS

Twice (sometimes thrice) a month we host Full Moon rituals & Dark Moon rituals. These are held to honor the Goddess and are open to all study group members. Sometimes, our Esbats will coincide with the Lunar rituals.

CURRENT MOON about the moon

ESBATS

Our Esbats may take place as often as every week. Sometimes they are performed during our Lunar rituals. The purpose of our Esbats is to meet together, one with another, to share our joy of life and to reaffirm our feelings for the Gods.

FELLOWSHIP OF THE SACRED MOON

Merry Meet!

We are an established eclectic Pagan discussion and study group located in the Yakima valley dedicated to the continuance of the Old Religion.

Our studies include basic, intermediate, and advanced Witchcraft (or whatever each individual prefers to name their path) . We have videos, crafts, field trips and other projects that are open to anyone interested in networking and learning with other Pagans.

We are hoping that anyone who wishes to study and learn the Ways of the Old Religion will contact us and perhaps even join us every Sunday & Wednesday at 5:00pm in group study.

We also have ordained clergy within the group who are ready and willing to assist people throughout the world.

If you have an open mind and wish to participate you are more than welcome to contact us. We hope to hear from you soon. Call us at (509) 945-6586. Blessed Be!

Bright Blessings!
The Rev. Jasper Sparrowhawk
Church of the Sacred Moon
Selah, WA

visit us on the web at www.sacredmoonchurch.org

) O (

Copywrite © 2007
Church of the Sacred Moon

Event Location: 1106 W. Cherry Ave. in Selah, WA

Phone: (509) 945-6586

For more information about Fellowship of the Sacred Moon please CLICK HERE

MOON SCHOOL

Merry Meet!

‘Church of the Sacred Moon’ is inviting local Pagans to bring their children to ‘Moon School’ every Sunday & Wednesday at 5:00pm during our ‘Fellowship’ meetings.

We have set aside space for our children to enjoy a multitude of learning activities.

The children’s activities are coordinated and supervised by at least 2 responsible adults.

Activities are Pagan oriented and include coloring, puzzles, crafts, stories, sing-alongs, etc.

For more information please contact the Rev. Aldarana at (509) 697-3943, or send an email to [email protected], or visit us on the web at www.sacredmoonchurch.org or www.witchvox.com

Bright Blessings,
The Rev. Aldarana
Youth Activity Director
Church of the Sacred Moon
Selah, WA

NOTE: Moon School is not a daycare. Parents are responsible for their children’s behavior. The purpose of Moon School is to provide Pagan oriented activities that are age appropriate, while preventing disruptions to our weekly ‘Fellowship’ meetings.

Copywrite © 2007
Church of the Sacred Moon

For more information about MOON SCHOOL please go to "The Witches' Voice" by CLICKING HERE

PAGANS IN RECOVERY

12 Step Pagan Recovery Group

Merry Meet!

The only requirement for membership is a desire for recovery. We all identify with the same problem regardless of how our addiction may manifest. Our members come from a variety of spiritual traditions, beliefs, paths, recovery programs, etc. We gather here to share how our recovery may work in harmony with our spiritual paths. If we read from the literature of one program or another we must look for the similarities rather than the differences.

As 12-Step programs are sometimes based in a Christian-biased atmosphere; our aim is to assist and support Pagans working these programs. We wish to explore questions particular to Pagans in recovery such as: How do we empower the self without empowering the self that led us to our addiction? Whether divinity as you may understand it lies within the self or without; whether it be male, female, many, singular, the energies of the earth, or the higher self within; we as Pagans commonly accept the responsibility for being the threshold through which the Godhead or Higher Power may express itself in our universe.

We meet every Sunday at 3:00pm at 1106 W. Cherry Ave. in Selah, WA. Children are welcome. However, we ask that parents control their children so that they do not interrupt the meeting.

If you are interested in getting help to overcome your addictions please contact us at (509) 945-6586, or e-mail the Rev. Jasper Sparrowhawk at [email protected].

Blessed Be!

) O (

Copywrite © 2007
Pagans in Recovery

Websites:

PIR MySpace group

PIR Yahoo! group

Mailing Address: PO Box 462, Selah, WA 98942

For more information about PAGANS IN RECOVERY please CLICK HERE

Pagan News

ADHERENTS ARE POSITIVE ABOUT PAGANISM

Adherents are positive about Paganism
By GORDON KING
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

GORDON KING/Yakima Herald-Republic
Pagans in the Church of the Sacred Moon celebrate the Dark Moon ritual recently in a Selah backyard. Melvin Neifert and Jennifer Morgan light candles at each compass point -- north, south, east and west -- as they begin the ceremony. Neifert's dog, Paige, wanders through the ceremony's sacred circle during the ritual.

Melvin Neifert is no devil worshipper.
But he is a witch.
He's heard the criticisms. Devil worshipper. Evil. Anti-Christian. As the president of the Church of the Sacred Moon, the Yakima Valley's only Pagan church officially recognized by the state, Neifert knows the stereotypes. None of them are true, says the 31-year-old Neifert. Pagans don't believe in the devil. They don't do evil, believing if they do, it will come back to them. And, he says, "I don't hold any animosity against Christians -- just those people who have abused our religion."

The Pagan church is loosely organized with no central doctrine or scriptures. Common themes are, however, woven through Pagan beliefs. They believe in environmental stewardship. Also, Pagans have the freedom to do what they want, knowing they must take responsibility for their actions. They subscribe to the idea that whatever you do comes back to you several times over. "If we send out positive energy, then it comes back to us," Neifert says.

They celebrate eight main holidays each year. The celebrations invoke many ancient Celtic traditions and are tied to seasons and lunar phases. And while Paganism draws on many pre-Christian, tribal and mystic beliefs, its adherents are decidedly 21st century, with Web sites, blogs and MySpace postings dedicated to Paganism. There's also a Pagan 12-step recovery group.

The Church of the Sacred Moon has its own Web site. The church is incorporated as a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization with a set of bylaws and a board of directors.

Members of the Church of the Sacred Moon consider themselves Wiccans, which is a denomination within Paganism. Paganism is an umbrella term that encompasses many ancient beliefs, says Neifert.

The church is small; there are only five initiated members now. It's by choice, says Neifert. "We are really, really careful who we bring in." It's not enough that prospective members attend study groups and learn the details of Paganism and Wicca. "We take everything into consideration -- the group dynamics, personal energy, etc.," Neifert says.

There are other Pagans in the Yakima Valley but it's hard to determine just how many because, says Neifert, "networking Pagans is like herding cats." They're often individualistic, with little inclination to join in organized worship. The same holds true nationally and worldwide. Estimates range from 100,000 to 4 million, according to adherents.com, a compilation of religion statistics.

The Church of the Sacred Moon holds a study group on Sunday and Wednesday evenings at Neifert's Selah home at which anything related to Paganism is discussed. The study sessions, along with the holiday celebrations and lunar rituals, are all open to the public. The rituals are held "where we feel like doing them," including backyards and parks, says Neifert.

Though he's never been harassed by believers in other religions, Neifert thinks he has lost at least one job because of his religious beliefs. He has no concrete proof of job-related religious discrimination, simply a suspicion that it was the real reason he was fired from a job.

Paganism gives Barry Andrews of Naches something he couldn't find in other religions. He felt torn between what are considered more traditional denominations. Then a year and a half ago the 40-year-old came to Paganism and Wicca, and it clicked. "I can now relate to a higher power up there that makes me a better person."

Brandy Rintoul, 25, says she "never liked going to church because it was always closed in, always inside." "I like being out in the air, under the trees and stars. It's all so peaceful," she says. Paganism, with its emphasis on nature, let her be outside. Unlike other religions, Paganism doesn't tell her what to do, says Rintoul. "It gives me a choice. It's more real to me than what's written in the Bible."
In February 1999, Neifert says he was at a low point in his life. Trying to kick drug and alcohol addictions, he admits, "I hit bottom. At that point I needed something. "I tried the Christianity thing but something was missing. It just wasn't for me." Upon the recommendation of friends, he began to explore Paganism and "it just hit home for me," says Neifert.

To view an audio slideshow of the 3rd Annual Beltane Celebration CLICK HERE .

Lesson of the Week

WITCH (ETYMOLOGY)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Etymology of the word witch.

INDO-EUROPEAN ETYMOLOGY

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word witch derives from the Old English nouns wicca /'wit??/ (masc.) "sorcerer, wizard" and wicce /'wit?e/ (fem.) "sorceress, witch".

The exact etymology of wicce is problematic. R. Lühr[1] connects wigol "prophetic, mantic", wiglian "to practice divination" (Middle Low German wichelen "bewitch", wicker "soothsayer") and suggests Proto-Germanic *wigon, geminated (c.f. Verschärfung) to *wikkon. The basic form would then be the feminine, wicce *wikkæ *wikkon with palatalization due to the preceding i and the following *æ *on in early Ingvaeonic. The palatal -cc- /?/ in wicca would then be analogous to the feminine. An alternative possibility is to derive the palatal /?/ directly from the verb wiccian *wikkija.[2] Lühr conversely favours derivation of this verb from the noun. The Proto-Indo-European root from which these words are derived is *weik- "to separate, to divide", probably via early Germanic practices of cleromancy such as those reported by Tacitus.[3]

The American Heritage Dictionary suggests connection to the Proto-Indo-European root *weg- ('to be lively', 'to be wakeful or alert'),[4] and offers the Proto-Germanic reconstruction *wikkjaz ('one who wakes the dead') as a probable ancestor. Walter William Skeat[5] derived the word from PIE *weid-, Old English wita "wise man, wizard" and witan "to know", considering it a corruption of an earlier*witga. No Old English spelling with -t- is known, and this etymology is not accepted today[6]. The OED states that the noun is "apparently" deverbal (derived from wiccian), but for the verb merely states that it is "of obscure origin".

OLD ENGLISH

Old English also had hægtesse "witch, fury", whence Modern English hag, of uncertain origin, but cognate to German Hexe, possibly from a *haga-tusjon- "fence-wight" or similar. Other Old English synonyms of wicca and wicce include gealdricge and scinlæce.

The Old English plural form for both the masculine and feminine nouns was wiccan (= "witches") and wiccecræft was "witchcraft". The earliest recorded use of the word is in the Laws of Ælfred which date to circa 890:[7][8][9]

Tha faemnan, the gewuniath onfon gealdorcraeftigan and scinlaecan and wiccan, ne laet thu tha libban.

Women who are accustomed to receiving enchanters and sorceresses and witches, do not let them live!

In the homilies of the Old English grammarian Ælfric, dating to the late 10th century we find:

Ne sceal se cristena befrinan tha fulan wiccan be his gesundfulnysse.

A Christian should not consult foul witches concerning his prosperity.

In both these examples wiccan is the plural noun, not an adjective. The adjective fulan (foul) can mean "physically unclean" as well as "morally or spiritually unclean" or "wicked".

In Old English glossaries the words wicce and wicca are used to gloss such Latin terms as hariolus, conjector, and pythonyssa, all of which mean 'diviner', 'soothsayer', which suggests a possible role of fortune-teller for the witch in The word wicca is associated with animistic healing rites in Halitgar's Latin Penitential where it is stated that

Some men are so blind that they bring their offering to earth-fast stone and also to trees and to wellsprings, as the witches teach, and are unwilling to understand how stupidly they do or how that dead stone or that dumb tree might help them or give forth health when they themselves are never able to stir from their place.

The phrase swa wiccan tæcaþ ("as the witches teach") seems to be an addition to Halitgar's original, added by an 11th century Old English translator.[10] Anglo-Saxon times.

FROM OLD TO MODERN ENGLISH

The Middle English word wicche did not differentiate between masculine and feminine, however the masculine meaning became less common in Standard English, being replaced by words like 'wizard' and 'warlock'. The modern spelling witch with the medial 't' first appears in the 16th century. In current colloquial English "witch" is almost exclusively applied to women, and the OED has "now only dialectal" for the masculine noun, although some Wiccans and other Neopagans apply it equally to men and women.

Figurative use to refer to a bewitching young girl begins in the 18th century[11], while wiche as a contemptuous term for an old woman is attested since the 15th century. "A witch of Endor" (alluding to 1 Samuel 28:7) as a fanciful term for a medium appears in 19th century literature.

MODERN "WICCA"

The modern term "Wica" (pronounced /'w?.k?/, with spelling later standardised to "Wicca") first appears in the writings of Gerald Gardner (Witchcraft Today, 1954, and The Meaning of 'Witchcraft, 1959). He used the word as a mass noun referring to the adherents of his tradition of witchcraft, rather than the religion itself. The religion he referred to as 'witchcraft', never 'Wicca'.

The word seems to be based on Old English wicca discussed above. Robert Graves in his 1948 The White Goddess, in discussing the willow which was sacred to the Greek goddess Hecate, connects the word to the Indo-European root *wei- which connotes bending or pliance (from which we get the words 'wicker', 'willow' and 'witch-elm'), by saying:

Its connection with witches is so strong in Northern Europe, that the words 'witch' and 'wicked' are derived from the same ancient word for willow, which also yields 'wicker'.

Gardner himself claimed he learned the term from existing members of the group who initiated him into witchcraft in 1939:

"I realised I had stumbled on something interesting; but I was half-initiated before the word "Wica" which they used hit me like a thunderbolt, and I knew where I was, and that the Old Religion still existed."[12][13]

The word does not appear in the rituals commonly used nowadays in Gardnerian covens, which were composed by 1959.[14]

Following Gardner a few other early books about Gardner's witchcraft tradition also used the term, with the same spelling and meaning as Gardner. For example, Patricia and Arnold Crother in The Witches Speak (1959):[15]

[T]he Red Queen told Alice that she made words mean what wanted them to mean. She might very well have been talking about witchcraft, for today it is used to describe anything that one wishes to use it for. From the simple meaning "the craft of the Wica," it is used in connection with Black Magic, Satanism, Black Masses...

Also Raymond Buckland in Witchcraft - the Religion (1966):[16]

Today more and more people are turning to the Wica, finding the answer to their religious needs.

The spelling Wicca is now used almost exclusively, Seax-Wica being the only major use of the four-letter spelling. The first appearance of the spelling Wicca is in June John's 1969 book King of the Witches: The World of Alex Sanders.[17]

The word's first appearance within the title of a book was in Wicca: The Ancient Way published in 1981.[18]

The earliest evidence of the common adjectival form "Wiccan", also used as a noun, dates from the 1970s.[citation needed]

This article is part of the Witchcraft series African witchcraft - Asian witchcraft - European witchcraft - Middle Eastern witchcraft - North American witchcraft - South American witchcraft

NOTES

1. ^ R. Lühr, Expressivität und Lautgesetz im Germanischen, Heidelberg (1988), p. 354

2. ^ OED, s.v. witch

3. ^ Reallexikon der germanischen Altertumskunde IV, p. 506.

4. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language 4th Edition, online (2000): witch and *weg-. Accessed 3 May 2006.

5. ^ Principles of English Etymology (2 series, 1887 and 1891)

6. ^ but see Draeconin's etymology page. (accessed 2 May 2007)

7. ^ Oxford English Dictionary Online, 2nd Edition (1989).

8. ^ Bosworth, Joseph & T. Northcote Toller. (1998) An Anglo-Saxon dictionary, based on the manuscript collections of the late Joseph Bosworth; edited and enlarged by T. Northcote Toller. Oxford: Oxford University Press (reprint of 1898 edition). ISBN 0-19-863101-4

9. ^ Online Etymology Dictionary - witch

10. ^ Petterson, David C. Hostile Witnesses: Rescuing the History of Witchcraft from the Writings of Scholars and Churchmen. PO Box 62266, St. Louis Pk, MN 55426: David C. Petterson.

11. ^ Samuel Richardson, Pamela; or virtue rewarded (1739–40) has: "Mrs. Jervis, said he, take the little witch from me"

12. ^ Gerald Gardner, The Meaning of Witchcraft 11 (London: Acquarian, 1959)

13. ^ J. L. Bracelin Gerald Gardner: Witch 151 (1960; reprinted Thame, Oxford: I-H-O Books, 1999)

14. ^ Heselton, Philip (2000). Wiccan Roots: Gerald Gardner and the Modern Witchcraft Revival. Chieveley, Berkshire: Capall Bann. [page # needed]

15. ^ Patricia and Arnold Crother, The Witches Speak 39 (Douglas, I.o. M: Athol Publications, 1965)

16. ^ Raymond Buckland Witchcraft - the Religion 20 (Brentwood, NY: The Buckland Museum of Witchcraft and Magick, 1966)

17. ^ June Johns, King of the Witches: The World of Alex Sanders, (London, Peter Davies, 1969)

18. ^ Janus Mithras, Nuit Hilaria, Mer Amun, Wicca: The Ancient Way, Toronto, Canada, Isis Urania, 1981