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C A U L D R O N A N D C A N D L E #4 -- Mid-December 2000 formerly Cauldron News A Publication of The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum website: http://www.ecauldron.com/ mailing list/board: http://www.ecauldron.com/fregmb.html With a little help from The Witches' Thicket website: http://www.cros.net/soraya/ message board: http://forums.delphiforums.com/thicket/start In this Issue: [01] Editorial: Darkness and Light [02] Poem: Love Needs No Words [03] Study Guide: A Witches Bible, Part Two, Chapter XIV [04] Review: After the Ecstasy, the Laundry [05] Review: Origins of Modern Witchcraft [06] Review: Murder at Witches' Bluff [07] Review: Pagan Parenting [08] Magick: Spell to Freeze Someone Out of Your Life [09] Magick: Luck Ball Charm [10] Midwinter Night's Eve: Yule [11] Yule Recipes [12] Humor: Bush Sues Santa [13] Software: NetLaunch [14] New Articles on The Cauldron's Site [15] New Web Poll [16] Support The Cauldron When You Buy at Amazon.com [17] Cauldron Chats: Tuesdays, 10-11pm CDT [18] Newsletter and Forum Info (Including How To Subscribe/Unsubscribe) +++ Submission Deadline for next issue: January 1, 2001 +++ [01] ========= ========= EDITORIAL: DARKNESS AND LIGHT ========= by Elspeth Sapphire ========= I had my share of darkness and light today. And it isn't even Yule yet. You see, we were putting up the Yule tree today. I have been collecting ornaments since my first year in college. Each has great meaning to me for each was a gift or bought as a memory of a special time in my life. There are the sloppy painted ornaments that adorned the tiny tree that Alan bought me in my sophomore year. I had been mourning the fact that I had no tree and missed it so. He promptly went down and spent his money on a tree for me, then added a kit to decorate stamped wooden ornaments. They might not be the best made ornaments I ever crafted, but the love shines from them every year as I hang them. There are the ones made from wrapping paper pictures glued to colored paper and strung with yarn. That was the year we were living in Germany, almost too broke to buy food. Another wife and I decided that we wouldn't let that stop us and made what we could, out of what we could. Our little bit of love lighting up the darkness. Ornament after ornament went on the tree, each with a special story a special reason for bringing love and joy to our current celebration. Then, I pulled out a newspaper bundle and slowly unwrapped it. The ornament within brought reluctant tears to my eyes. The cause is not immediately apparent. After all, all that I was holding was a wooden snowman with his black hat and tiny broom. Nothing to cry about, right? I always had a dream to have children. Even as a teenager, I would browse through the baby aisles and dream of the day I would cradle my own tightly in my arms. I would fall in love and marry and have 10 or 12 kids and live happily ever after. Of course, the gods rarely give us what we want, in the ways that we want them. They make us work for our dreams. I was 24 years old and married for 5 years, and only had three miscarriages to show for our attempts to start a family. I was about to give up on my dreams when I became pregnant again. Alan and I had always been ones to discuss what traditions and family values we wanted to embrace. One tradition that we decided on was giving each of our children an ornament each year. We didn't want them to have to start from the beginning like I did. When they left home, they would take a whole box of ornaments and memories with them. Here we were in Germany the home of Yule ornaments. It would be a shame not to start our child's collection with an ornament from Germany. So, even though Yule was many months away and the babe's due date wasn't until Samhain, I picked out an ornament a snow man. I wrapped it carefully and took it with me on my flight back to the States the next month. It was already very valuable to me. It was my first gift to our child. To make a long story much shorter, my daughter was born on Thanksgiving Day. She was born not breathing and despite the best efforts the doctors at the intensive care nursery, three days later she died. I was holding her at the time, Alan's arms tight around me. A very sad story. It took many, many years, but eventually I had living children: a son and a daughter. They brought joy into my life, and yes, on occasion tears and anger. We carried on with them the tradition we started with my poor Catrina and each has a big box of ornaments to put on the tree each year. Matt will be taking his box away with him next year as he enters college and builds a life for himself. And I look forward to having grandchildren opening boxes from grandma holding that year's ornament. Still, that is the future, and this is the now and I hold a small wooden snowman in my hand. For 20 years, I have hung this ornament, each time reminding me of what this Yule season is all about. You see, the death of my daughter was a great sadness in my life. I never thought that the sorrow would completely leave. However, like this time of year, her death brought a spark of light into the darkness. I had the wonder of being with her as she breathed her last, in a circle of perfect love and trust greater than any I ever experienced in a coven. I learned that to really appreciate the gifts of the gods we sometimes have to suffer for them. I grew closer in love to the man who I had married. And I knew, in the depths of my heart and soul, that this spirit this soul came into life to teach me what I needed to learn. So, I hang the ornament, reflecting on those lessons and the season. The dark is growing, but within the time of the greatest blackness, there will be a spark of light. And that spark of light is called love. I wish all of you the happiness of the season. May your homes be filled with light and warmth and joy, keeping the dark at bay. And may you, like me, find at the moment of true darkness, that spark of love that makes it all worth the effort. A happy Yule to you and yours! ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ CAULDRON AND CANDLE WEB SITE The Cauldron and Candle now has its own web site where we store our back issues for easy reading. http://www.ecauldron.com/cnc/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ [02] ========= ========= LOVE NEEDS NO WORDS ========= A Poem by Elspeth Sapphire ========= Mother and wife abandoned, Puts aside dreams of love lost Keeps her family together Never wonders at the cost. A mother's Love needs no words That aren't spoken by the heart She will fight like a beast any Tearing her family apart. Husband sits by wife's bed, Her hand held tight in comfort. Watching her life fade away Knowing the time is too short. A husband's Love needs no words As he watches his wife die. It is there in his caring As he waits to say good-bye. Sisters -- always bickering Petty quarrels aplenty. Come together in hard times -- Share each other's agony. A sister's Love needs no words, Only a reason to be shown Unspoken most the years Still deep within is known. Friends find friends in strangest ways, Glowing words of aid on a screen Giving strength and guidance By a touch felt but never seen. A friend's Love needs no words, For actions speak much longer. Every bit of ourselves we give We gain back even stronger. [03] ========= ========= STUDY GUIDE: A WITCHES BIBLE, PART TWO, CHAPTER XIV: ========= MYTH, RITUAL, AND SYMBOLISM ========= by Randall Sapphire ========= [We are discussing chapters in the latter part of Janet and Steward Farrar's A Witches Bible on The Cauldron's message board/mailing list, about one chapter every two weeks. See http://www.ecauldron.com/bkwbible.html for a review and ordering info if you don't already have a copy of this excellent book. The third chapter we discussed was chapter XIV in the second half of the book entitled "Myth, Ritual, and Symbolism" Here is the "study guide" I posted to start off the discussion. The Farrars use Jungian terms throughout this chapter -- I've generalized them for the benefit of those not very familiar with Jung.] The 14th chapter opens with a discussion of how various religions treat their myths. The Farrars point out that some religions have lost touch with the power of myth and (they imply) have lost touch with the true meaning of their myths in the process: Some try to cram their myths into factual reality, others try to limit contact with them except through a rigid orthodoxy, other have merely eliminated almost all ritual interaction with their mythology. Mythology, they claim, has a hard time fitting into any faith that is little more than a "rigid structure of conditioned reflexes." They quote several definitions of "myth" which can perhaps best be summed up with my definition (without violating lots of copyrights, at least). Myths are stories that, while not necessarily literally true, convey archetypical truths that provide wisdom and understanding about the nature of perceived reality. Scientific facts speak to our conscious mind. Mythological facts speak to our subconscious and superconscious minds. In my opinion, those who try to hold myths up to the standards of science and history are missing the real power of myths by trying to redirect their thrust from the subconscious and superconscious to the conscious mind. It really doesn't matter if the Biblical flood or the Goddess' decent into the underworld ever actually happened for the stories to provide wisdom and understanding. The Farrars go into this in some detail and bring a lot of Jung into it. To the Farrars, at the core all ritual is reenactment of myth. Rituals are powerful because they allow us to experience Myth directly. When a myth is read, the conscious mind it more likely to filter it with pointed questions about its truth. Reenacting myth as ritual lessens the role of the conscious mind as it speaks more directly to the subconscious and superconscious. Reenacting myth also makes a greater impact. Symbols, in the Farrars' view, are the embodiment of the bare essentials of a concept. They may take many forms. The Farrars spent almost a page giving a wide variety of examples. They say that the essential nature of myth and ritual is their use of symbols to convey truth. They point out that symbols can be interpreted in different ways by different people. The Farrars conclude this chapter with a discussion of the Wiccan view that the Gods are really just masks laid over Archetypical beings. 1) How important do you believe an understanding of the nature of mythology is to religion? 2) Do you agree or disagree with the Farrars implication that religions with have lost touch with their mythological roots are somehow "defective"? Why or why not? 3) If you are familiar with Jungian thought, do you agree or disagree with the Farrar's interpretation of it with respect to Wicca? 4) The Farrars imply that even the rituals of simple spells are mythologically based. Do you agree? Can you find a mythological base in some of the simple spells/rituals you've done? 5) The Farrars use the tarot as a example of symbolism. Which Major Arcana from the Tarot do you see as symbols of (the Jungian archetypes of) Mother, Rebirth, Spirit, and Trickster? 6) Do you believe the Gods are masks over Archetypes, separate beings, or something else altogether? Why do you believe as you do? ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ SEND A PAGAN POSTCARD You can send a Pagan Postcard from the menu of any of our web pages at http://www.ecauldron.com/. If you haven't tried our postcard site, give it a try. It has quite a few nice features. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ [04] ========= ========= REVIEW: AFTER THE ECSTASY, THE LAUNDRY ========= Reviewed by Diane Verrochi (aka Firefly) ========= After the Ecstasy, the Laundry Author: Jack Kornfield Hardcover, 314 pages Publisher: Bantam Books Publication date: June 2000 ISBN: 0553102907 US Retail Price: $24.95 Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0553102907/thecauldron This book seeks to address a question important to anyone seriously following a spiritual path: after those moments of enlightenment, of transcendent wonder, then what? How does that fit into day to day life? In approaching this question, Kornfield comes primarily from a Buddhist perspective, but makes it a point to include anecdotes from people following various paths, such as Judaism, Sufism, Hinduism, and Christianity. The book is organized into four sections: Preparation for Ecstasy, The Gates of Awakening, No Enlightened Retirement, and Awakening in the Laundry. Within this progression, he provides myths from different traditions, particularly Baba Yaga who makes several appearances, as well as the anecdotes mentioned above. This provides a basis for comparison and contrast between the ways various paths lead one to moments of ecstasy or awakening and then bring whatever is found there back to daily life. The book's greatest strength is in its presentation of challenges anyone may face in integrating spiritual discoveries into their life. From the workplace to family dynamics, most major classes of challenges are addressed, and candidly. This is a welcome respite in a book market often laden with rosy predictions of utopian existence if only we would just [fill in the blank with fad du jour]. Its greatest weakness is that, in the attempt to make it as accessible as possible to people of all paths, sometimes the point of any given chapter or section seems to get buried under an avalanche of anecdotes. Also, there does not seem to be a substantial difference between the two last sections of the book, and it is unclear why they are not simply a single, if longer, grouping of chapters. With that in mind, it is probably a good idea to read this book with periodic breaks to consider the overall pattern and progression so as to keep some sense of where it is heading. Despite these drawbacks, I feel this book is well worth the read. It has definitely earned a spot on my "frequently used spiritual reference" shelf, with sections flagged for those days the ecstasy is lost somewhere in the laundry basket. This review is available on our web site at http://www.ecauldron.com/bkatetl.html [05] ========= ========= REVIEW: ORIGINS OF MODERN WITCHCRAFT ========= Reviewed by Randall Sapphire ========= Origins of Modern Witchcraft: The Evolution of a World Religion Author: Ann Moura Trade Paperback, 336 pages Publisher: Llewellyn Publication date: October 2000 ISBN: 1567186483 US Retail Price: $14.95 Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1567186483/thecauldron Given all the misinformation floating around the Neo-Pagan community about the origins of Wicca and other Neo-Pagan religions, I was pleased when the Origins of Modern Witchcraft arrived for review. Here was a book by the author one of the better recent series of "101" books (Green Witchcraft I, II, and III). A book by an author with a masters in history. Unfortunately, my high hopes for this book were quickly dashed. Origins of Modern Witchcraft is a readable and enjoyable romp through historical speculation. I enjoyed reading this book even as I picked it apart. Ann Moura has an engaging style of writing and the historical theory she presents is interesting. She is exploring the theory that there were two major ancient civilizations in Eurasia, the Sind in the Indus Valley and the Aryan invaders. The Sind were peaceful and advanced with a life-affirming God and Goddess while the Aryans were warlike invaders with angry, hostile Gods. My first major problem with this book is the lack of footnotes. The author makes grand, sweeping claims throughout this book without providing much -- if anything -- to support them. For example, the author states that "the people of Sind understood the concepts of light years and the equivalent of modern astronomy's 'island universes'...." This is a remarkable claim, yet no support for it is provided. This volume is full of such remarkable claims, most unsupported. My second major problem with this book is that it is very hostile to religions, beliefs, and practices it claims come from the Aryans. I got the impression from reading this book that those Aryan invaders were directly or indirectly responsible for every ill in Western and Near Eastern societies. While I suppose this is possible, it sounds more like scapegoating to me, especially given the lack of references. Origins of Modern Witchcraft is unusual in one respect, at least for a history book; it includes a number of rituals. Each chapter has at least one ritual related to the material in the chapter. The rituals are well-designed and described, but seem a bit out of place in a history book. I enjoyed reading this book, but was not convinced by it. It presents an interesting theory of history. Without references to support all the statements made, however, the reader has no way to tell if this theory is likely or unlikely. Given the grand and sweeping nature of many of the claims made in this book, I personally have strong doubts. Readers who prefer their history well-supported instead of declaratory will probably want to pass on this book as will those who prefer not to blame all the ills of history and the modern western world on one ancient people. This review is available on our web site at http://www.ecauldron.com/bkoomw.html [06] ========= ========= REVIEW: MURDER AT WITCHES' BLUFF ========= Reviewed by Randall Sapphire ========= Murder at Witches' Bluff Author: Silver Ravenwolf Trade Paperback, 480 pages Publisher: Llewellyn Publication date: October 2000 ISBN: 1567187277 US Retail Price: $14.95 Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1567187277/thecauldron I really like a good mystery story, especially those with an occult twist. Like her earlier novel, Beneath a Mountain Moon, Silver Ravenwolf's Murder at Witches' Bluff definitely qualifies as an enjoyable pagan-themed mystery novel. I picked up this book one evening intending to read just a few pages to see how well it started, then switch to another book I was just about finished with. I was about 75 pages into Murder before I noticed I had read much more than I had intended to and would not have time to finish my other book before I went to bed. This book really sucks you in quickly. The situation in Murder at Witches' Bluff seems quite straightforward, but there are deep, darker waters churning just below the surface. Siren McKay, a hypnotherapist, returns to her small town home of Cold Springs, Pennsylvania after being accused of killing her husband in New York City. Her alibi proved unshakable, but many in her hometown consider her a murderer who just barely escaped the death penalty. She returns to a town plagued again by strange, unexplainable fires. Sets of unexplainable fires have occurred in Cold Springs at intervals of years since the legendary murder of a coven of witches gathered on All Hallows Eve some two hundred years ago. Not only does she return to a troubled, edgy town where many think she is a murderer, but she unknowingly brings trouble with her. Someone has hired a really sick serial killer -- Ravenwolf handles this character well -- to do kill her after finding "the numbers." If this wasn't enough, some of her relatives are involved in something secretive and have been for generations: witchcraft. I don't want to go into much more detail because doing so would ruin a good mystery story. Siren is a strong character in a book filled with interesting characters, many of whom would be right at home in any small town. That's one of the strong points of this novel. Cold Springs, in spite of all the weird stuff going on around the area, feels like a real small town populated by real small town people. This novel also has one of the best variations on a "grandmother story" I've ever seen. A "grandmother story" is a tale of how one was initiated in Wicca or Witchcraft by an elderly relative who is, of course, now dead and therefore unable to confirm or deny the truth of the story. Unfortunately, this variation is so good that I expect that some Neo-Pagans will borrow it, modify it slightly, and use it to found their own "ancient" traditions. While I'm not a fan of much of Silver Ravenwolf's non-fiction, she handles occult mysteries quite well. Murder at Witches' Bluff is an enjoyable read. What more could one ask of a mystery novel? If you like mystery novels with an occult flair, you'll probably enjoy this book as well. I hope Ravenwolf writes another mystery soon. This review is available on our web site at http://www.ecauldron.com/bkmawb.html [07] ========= ========= REVIEW: PAGAN PARENTING ========= Reviewed by Randall Sapphire ========= Pagan Parenting: Spiritual, Magical and Emotional Development of the Child Author: Kristin Madden Trade Paperback, 312 pages Publisher: Llewellyn Publication date: November 2000 ISBN: 1567184928 US Retail Price: $14.95 Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1567184928/thecauldron Neo-Paganism has come of age. When I first became a Pagan in the 1970s, very few Pagans I knew had children. This quickly changed, of course, as people started forming families, both traditional and non-traditional. Unfortunately, only recently have books aimed at helping Pagan parents raise their Pagan children been published. In her deceptively short book, Pagan Parenting, Kristen Madden covers the basics of raising a child in a Pagan home. She provides games, exercises, and rituals for children of all ages and their parents to help a child develop his or her psychic and magickal abilities. Most are simple and easy for a young child to understand (shielding as being inside an egg, for example) and are designed around a child's attention span. While these activities are what the back cover blurb stresses, there is a lot more to this book: material that may actually be more useful and important to many parents. The chapter on the family covers things you will not find in standard books on families, such as communal and polyamorous families and families where parents are involved in alternate sexual lifestyles. The chapter on communities discusses Pagan communities, including things to consider when going to Pagan festivals with your children. This book helps parents answer a number of tough questions that generally aren't answered -- or even considered -- in mainstream books on parenting. Unfortunately, some topics like deciding whether or not to homeschool, are given less attention than they probably deserve. One thing I really like about this book is that the author doesn't try to tell parents what they should be doing. Unlike so many books I've seen on raising children, the author of Pagan Parenting doesn't have the one perfect child-raising system to sell the reader. The author doesn't come across as "The Expert" lecturing parents on the "proper way" to raise their children. Instead she comes across as a friend presenting ideas and discussing methods other Pagans have used in particular situations. I'd recommend this book to any Pagan with children or thinking of having children. It provides a thoughtful general overview of being a Pagan parent and raising a Pagan child in a Pagan family. It will not give you the answers, but it will give you ideas and activities. Most importantly, this book will make you think about your responsibilities and the decisions you are making from a Pagan perspective. Thinking about such things is something I think all parents should do. This review is available on our web site at http://www.ecauldron.com/bkpp.html [08] ========= ========= MAGICK: SPELL TO FREEZE SOMEONE OUT OF YOUR LIFE ========= A Spell for relationships gone very bad ========= If someone keeps hassling you and you're having trouble getting them out of your life then give this spell a try. Supplies: 8" yellow candle 8" blue candle 8" grey candle a cheap knife charcoal heavy-duty safety pin Location: You will need to find a place where there is green grass and trees growing in one direction and the other direction needs to be more barren (such as sand or rocks). Timing: Only perform this spell between the hours of twelve midnight and one in the morning. Start the spell on a sunday night. Procedure: Cut seven notches in each candle. On the base of the yellow candle engrave your name and birthdate and on the grey candle engrave the name and birthdate of the person you are trying to get rid of. Place the blue candle in the middle, the yellow candle on the grassy side and the grey candle on the barren side. The candles must be placed 24 inches from the blue candle. In the middle between the blue candle and the grey candle place the knife lying with the sharp blade facing the grey candle. Surround the grey candle with some charcoal. Draw a dove with your little finger of the left hand around the yellow candle. With your left hand light both the yellow candle and the blue candle. With your right hand light the grey candle. Repeat the following words three times: "atce atce atce ete el ikaw". Let all three candles burn one section. On the next night repeat the same moving the candles another 24 inches apart. Continue for seven nights in total until the last night you will have one section of each candle. Bury the grey candle in the ground with charcoal. Bury knife with blade facing grey candle. Bury blue candle. Take the yellow candle home and place in bottom draw of your cupboard on white cloth. [09] ========= ========= MAGICK: LUCK BALL CHARM ========= Everyone could use a bit of luck ========= Have a small amount of whiskey on hand as it is necessary to give this charm a 'drink' as it is being made. You will also need 16 pieces of white yarn, each 36 inches long and 16 pieces of white thread the same length. Fold each piece 4 times until it is 9 inches long. Take 4 of the yarn and 4 of the thread and lay them together ends matching. Now tie the strands together making a 4 knotted skein. Repeat with the remaining pieces so that 4 skeins are made with a total of 16 knots. The skeins are then rounded into a nest and a small amount of whiskey is sprinkled over it. In the center of the nest is placed a small ball of tinfoil, some Red Clover herb, and Goofer Dust (graveyard dirt and mix mullein and pachouli powder with it). Wrap the nest and its contents tight with more white yarn and secure with a tight knot. When finished it should look like a ball. Again, sprinkle whiskey on it. Wrap the ball in tinfoil and then wrap in red silk. Put the finished ball in a bag and either hide it or carry it in a pocket. Once a week the ball should be taken out of the bag and receive its 'drink' of whiskey to keep up its strength. [10] ========= ========= MIDWINTER NIGHT'S EVE: YULE ========= By Mike Nichols ========= Our Christian friends are often quite surprised at how enthusiastically we Pagans celebrate the 'Christmas' season. Even though we prefer to use the word 'Yule', and our celebrations may peak a few days before the 25th, we nonetheless follow many of the traditional customs of the season: decorated trees, caroling, presents, Yule logs, and mistletoe. We might even go so far as putting up a 'Nativity set', though for us the three central characters are likely to be interpreted as Mother Nature, Father Time, and the Baby Sun-God. None of this will come as a surprise to anyone who knows the true history of the holiday, of course. In fact, if truth be known, the holiday of Christmas has always been more Pagan than Christian, with it's associations of Nordic divination, Celtic fertility rites, and Roman Mithraism. That is why both Martin Luther and John Calvin abhorred it, why the Puritans refused to acknowledge it, much less celebrate it (to them, no day of the year could be more holy than the Sabbath), and why it was even made illegal in Boston! The holiday was already too closely associated with the birth of older Pagan gods and heroes. And many of them (like Oedipus, Theseus, Hercules, Perseus, Jason, Dionysus, Apollo, Mithra, Horus and even Arthur) possessed a narrative of birth, death, and resurrection that was uncomfortably close to that of Jesus. And to make matters worse, many of them pre-dated the Christian Savior. Ultimately, of course, the holiday is rooted deeply in the cycle of the year. It is the Winter Solstice that is being celebrated, seed-time of the year, the longest night and shortest day. It is the birthday of the new Sun King, the Son of God -- by whatever name you choose to call him. On this darkest of nights, the Goddess becomes the Great Mother and once again gives birth. And it makes perfect poetic sense that on the longest night of the winter, 'the dark night of our souls', there springs the new spark of hope, the Sacred Fire, the Light of the World, the Coel Coeth. That is why Pagans have as much right to claim this holiday as Christians. Perhaps even more so, as the Christians were rather late in laying claim to it, and tried more than once to reject it. There had been a tradition in the West that Mary bore the child Jesus on the twenty-fifth day, but no one could seem to decide on the month. Finally, in 320 C.E., the Catholic Fathers in Rome decided to make it December, in an effort to co-opt the Mithraic celebration of the Romans and the Yule celebrations of the Celts and Saxons. There was never much pretense that the date they finally chose was historically accurate. Shepherds just don't 'tend their flocks by night' in the high pastures in the dead of winter! But if one wishes to use the New Testament as historical evidence, this reference may point to sometime in the spring as the time of Jesus' birth. This is because the lambing season occurs in the spring and that is the only time when shepherds are likely to 'watch their flocks by night' -- to make sure the lambing goes well. Knowing this, the Eastern half of the Church continued to reject December 25, preferring a 'movable date' fixed by their astrologers according to the moon. Thus, despite its shaky start (for over three centuries, no one knew when Jesus was supposed to have been born!), December 25 finally began to catch on. By 529, it was a civic holiday, and all work or public business (except that of cooks, bakers, or any that contributed to the delight of the holiday) was prohibited by the Emperor Justinian. In 563, the Council of Braga forbade fasting on Christmas Day, and four years later the Council of Tours proclaimed the twelve days from December 25 to Epiphany as a sacred, festive season. This last point is perhaps the hardest to impress upon the modern reader, who is lucky to get a single day off work. Christmas, in the Middle Ages, was not a single day, but rather a period of twelve days, from December 25 to January 6. The Twelve Days of Christmas, in fact. It is certainly lamentable that the modern world has abandoned this approach, along with the popular Twelfth Night celebrations. Of course, the Christian version of the holiday spread to many countries no faster than Christianity itself, which means that 'Christmas' wasn't celebrated in Ireland until the late fifth century; in England, Switzerland, and Austria until the seventh; in Germany until the eighth; and in the Slavic lands until the ninth and tenth. Not that these countries lacked their own mid-winter celebrations of Yuletide. Long before the world had heard of Jesus, Pagans had been observing the season by bringing in the Yule log, wishing on it, and lighting it from the remains of last year's log. Riddles were posed and answered, magic and rituals were practiced, wild boars were sacrificed and consumed along with large quantities of liquor, corn dollies were carried from house to house while caroling, fertility rites were practiced (girls standing under a sprig of mistletoe were subject to a bit more than a kiss), and divinations were cast for the coming Spring. Many of these Pagan customs, in an appropriately watered-down form, have entered the mainstream of Christian celebration, though most celebrants do not realize (or do not mention it, if they do) their origins. For modern Witches, Yule (from the Anglo-Saxon 'Yula', meaning 'wheel' of the year) is usually celebrated on the actual Winter Solstice, which may vary by a few days, though it usually occurs on or around December 21st. It is a Lesser Sabbat or Lower Holiday in the modern Pagan calendar, one of the four quarter-days of the year, but a very important one. This year (1988) it occurs on December 21st at 9:28 am CST. Pagan customs are still enthusiastically followed. Once, the Yule log had been the center of the celebration. It was lighted on the eve of the solstice (it should light on the first try) and must be kept burning for twelve hours, for good luck. It should be made of ash. Later, the Yule log was replaced by the Yule tree but, instead of burning it, burning candles were placed on it. In Christianity, Protestants might claim that Martin Luther invented the custom, and Catholics might grant St. Boniface the honor, but the custom can demonstrably be traced back through the Roman Saturnalia all the way to ancient Egypt. Needless to say, such a tree should be cut down rather than purchased, and should be disposed of by burning, the proper way to dispatch any sacred object. Along with the evergreen, the holly and the ivy and the mistletoe were important plants of the season, all symbolizing fertility and everlasting life. Mistletoe was especially venerated by the Celtic Druids, who cut it with a golden sickle on the sixth night of the moon, and believed it to be an aphrodisiac. (Magically -- not medicinally! It's highly toxic!) But aphrodisiacs must have been the smallest part of the Yuletide menu in ancient times, as contemporary reports indicate that the tables fairly creaked under the strain of every type of good food. And drink! The most popular of which was the 'wassail cup' deriving its name from the Anglo-Saxon term 'waes hael' (be whole or hale). Medieval Christmas folklore seems endless: that animals will all kneel down as the Holy Night arrives, that bees hum the '100th psalm' on Christmas Eve, that a windy Christmas will bring good luck, that a person born on Christmas Day can see the Little People, that a cricket on the hearth brings good luck, that if one opens all the doors of the house at midnight all the evil spirits will depart, that you will have one lucky month for each Christmas pudding you sample, that the tree must be taken down by Twelfth Night or bad luck is sure to follow, that 'if Christmas on a Sunday be, a windy winter we shall see', that 'hours of sun on Christmas Day, so many frosts in the month of May', that one can use the Twelve Days of Christmas to predict the weather for each of the twelve months of the coming year, and so on. Remembering that most Christmas customs are ultimately based upon older Pagan customs, it only remains for modern Pagans to reclaim their lost traditions. In doing so, we can share many common customs with our Christian friends, albeit with a slightly different interpretation. And thus we all share in the beauty of this most magical of seasons, when the Mother Goddess once again gives birth to the baby Sun-God and sets the wheel in motion again. To conclude with a long-overdue paraphrase, 'Goddess bless us, every one!' (This file contains eight seasonal articles by Mike Nichols. They may be freely distributed provided that the following conditions are met: (1) No fee is charged for their use and distribution and no commercial use is made of them; (2) These files are not changed or edited in any way without the author's permission; (3) This notice is not removed. An article may be distributed as a separate file, provided that this notice is repeated at the beginning of each such file. These articles are periodically updated by the author; this version is current as of 9/28/88.) [11] ========= ========= YULE RECIPES ========= ========= +++ +++ SUNRISE EGG SQUARES +++ 1 pound pork sausage, cooked & drained 1 1/4 cups bisquick 4 ounces mushrooms, sliced 12 eggs 1/2 cup sliced green onions 1 cup milk 2 medium tomatoes, chopped 1 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 cups Mozzarella cheese, shredded 1/2 teaspoon each; pepper, oregano Layer the sausage, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, and cheese in a well greased 13"x9"x2" baking dish. Beat together the remaining ingredients in a non-metal bowl and pour over sausage mixture. Bake, covered, in a 350 degree oven until golden brown and set (about 30 minutes). Cut into 12 3-inch squares. Serves 12, can be halved. +++ +++ ROAST LOIN OF VENISON WITH CRANBERRIES +++ 2 thick slices of lemon 2 thick slices of orange 2 slices of peeled fresh ginger 1 1/2 cups sugar 1 small bay leaf 2 cups fresh cranberries 4 pounds boneless loin of venison, at room temperature 2 Tablespoons olive oil 1 teaspoon salt 1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground pepper 3/4 teaspoon finely chopped juniper berries 2 cups dry red wine 2 cups beef or venison stock 2 Tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces Fresh thyme sprigs, for garnish In a medium nonreactive saucepan, combine the lemon, orange, ginger, sugar and bay leaf with 1 cup of cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Reduce the heat to moderate and boil, uncovered, until syrupy, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the cranberries, then remove from heat and cool. Transfer the mixture to a glass container, coer and refrigerate for 1 to 2 days, stirring once or twice during that time. Preheat the oven to 400F. Rub the venison with the olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon of the salt, 1 teaspoon of the pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of the chopped juniper berries, pressing the seasonings into the meat. Set the loin on a rack in a roasting pan and roast, basting frequently with the pan juices, until medium-rare (about 135 degrees F on a meat thermometer), 25 to 30 minutes. Cover the venison loosely with foil and set aside for 10 to 15 minutes before carving. Meanwhile, remove and discard the bay leaf and the lemon, orange and ginger slices from the cranberries. In a food processor or blender, puree half the cranberries and half the liquid until smooth. In a medium nonreactive saucepan, boil the wine over high heat until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Add the cranberry puree, reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Strain the remaining whole cranberries and add them to the sauce with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon each of salt, pepper and chopped juniper berries. Swirl in the cold butter. Slice the venison thinly (stir any juices into the sauce) and serve with the sauce, reheated if necessary. +++ +++ SHORTEST DAY HAM LOAF +++ 1 pound ground pork 1/2 cup fine bread crumbs 1 pound ground ham 1 medium tomato, chopped 2 eggs 1/4 cup milk Mix all ingredients above and shape into 2 individual loaves. In a saucepan combine: 1 cup brown sugar 1/3 cup vinegar 1 teaspoon dried mustard 1/2 cup water Bring sauce to a boil, pour over the loaves, place loaves in a 350 degree oven and bake for 1 hour, basting regularly. Makes 10-12 servings. +++ +++ YULEFEST HAM BALLS +++ 3 cups bisquick 2 teaspoons parsley flakes 10 1/2 cups smoked ham 2 teaspoons spicy brown mustard 4 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated 2/3 teaspoon milk 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese Lightly grease a 15 1/2" x 10 1/2" baking pan. Mix all above ingredients in a non-metal bowl. Shape mixture into 1" balls. Place the balls about 2" apart in the pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees, or until brown. Remove from pan and serve immediately. Makes 16 servings. +++ +++ SOLAR RETURN CHEESE BALLS +++ 3 tablespoons finely chopped pecans 1/4 teaspoon red hot pepper sauce 1 pkg. (8-oz) Neufchatel cream cheese 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic 3 green onions w/tops, finely chopped 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/4 cup minced parsley Preheat the oven to 350. Spread out chopped pecans on a cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes or until toasted, tossing once. In a small non-metal bowl, mix the cream cheese, onions, mustard, red pepper sauce, and garlic with mixer at a medium speed for 3 minutes. Stir in the cheddar cheese. Wrap in plastic wrap and shape into approx. 4" ball, refrigerate for 15 minutes. After, on a sheet of waxed paper, toss the pecans and parsley. Unwrap the cheese ball and carefully roll it around in the mixture, covering it completely. Rewrap the cheese ball and place in refrigerator until time to serve. Serve with crackers or fresh vegetables. Makes 24 servings. +++ +++ HOT SPICED WASSAIL (NON-ALCOHOLIC) +++ 4 cups cranberry juice 6 cinnamon sticks 5 cups apple cider 1 orange, studded with whole cloves 1 cup water 1 apple, cored and sliced 1/2 cup brown sugar Mix juice, cider, and water in large saucepan or crock pot. Add cinnamon sticks, clove studded orange, and apple slices. Simmer mixture for 4 hours. Serve hot. Makes 12 servings. +++ +++ YULE MOON COOKIES +++ 1 cup butter 1 1/4 cup sugar 2 tsp. grated lemon peel 1/4 tsp. salt 1 1/3 cup. flour 1 1/2 cups grated almonds (blanched) 1 tsp. vanilla Icing: 2 cups sifted confectioner's sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 2 1/2 T. water Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy and light. Add grated lemon peel, salt, flour, grated almonds, and 1 tsp. vanilla; mix thoroughly. Place dough in bowl. Cover and chill thoroughly. When dough is well chilled; or next day, roll out dough to 1/8" thickness and cut with moon/crescent cookie cutter. Place 1/2" apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Icing: While cookies bake, combine confectioner's sugar, vanilla and water. Spread over tops of cookies while still warm, but not too hot as icing will melt. Thin with additional drops of water if glaze is too thick. Allow cookies to cool. Yield: 10 dozen cookies. +++ +++ YULE LOG COOKIES +++ 1/2 cup Brown sugar, firmly packed 3 Tablespoons Butter or margarine, softened 1 Egg 1 cup All-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon Baking powder 1/2 teaspoon Ground cardamom 1/4 teaspoon Baking soda 1/4 teaspoon Ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon Ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon Ground allspice 1/4 teaspoon Ground nutmeg Red and green decorator icing Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, beat the brown sugar and margarine until blended. Add the egg; beat until well blended. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and spices; mix well. Divide the dough in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll each half of dough with your hands to make two 10 1/2-inch logs; flatten slightly to 1 1/4 inches in diameter. With a spatula, place the logs 2 to 3 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Dip a non-serrated knife in water; score each log diagonally at 3/4-inch intervals. Bake for 11 to 13 minutes, or until set and no longer moist. Cool for 1 minute. Remove from the cookie sheet; place on a wire rack. Cool for 5 minutes. With a serrated knife, cut the logs at the scored lines. Cool completely. Decorate each cookie with decorator icing to resemble a holly leaf and berries. [12] ========= ========= HUMOR: BUSH SUES SANTA ========= Author Unknown ========= [This is the closest thing you will find to a mention of the recent US election mess in this newsletter. Aren't you relieved?] AUSTIN, TX - Dec 15 - Attorneys for Texas Governor George W. Bush filed suit in federal court today, seeking to prevent Santa Claus from making his list and then checking it twice. The complaint seeks an immediate injunction against the beloved Christmas icon, asking the court to effectively ban his traditional practice of checking the list of good boys and girls one additional time before packing his sleigh. The suit, filed in the Federal District Court of Austin, Texas, asks a federal judge to "hereby order Mr. Claus to cease and desist all repetitive and duplicative list-checking activity, and certify the original list as submitted, without amendment, alteration, deletion, or other unnecessary modification." "There are no standards for deciding who is naughty, and who is nice. It's totally arbitrary and capricious. How many more times does he need to check? This checking, checking, and re-checking over and over again must stop now," said former Secretary James Baker. Baker further claimed that unnamed GOP observers witnessed an elf remove all boys named Brad from the "nice" list, filing them under "naughty" instead because "everyone knows all boys named Brad are brats." Gov. Bush cited the potential for unauthorized list tampering, and blasted what he called the "fuzzy math up there at the North Pole." "Their security is really awful, really bad," said Bush. "My mother just walked right in, told 'em she was Mrs. Claus. They didn't check her ID or nothing." Meanwhile, Dick Cheney, Gov. Bush's running mate, issued a direct plea to St. Nick himself. "Mr. Claus, I call on you to do the honorable thing, and quit checking your list. The children of the world have had enough. They demand closure now," Cheney said, adding that his granddaughter has already selected a name for the pony that she's asked for. Santa Claus could not be reached for comment, but a spokes-elf said he was "deeply distressed" by news of the pending legal action against him. "He's losing weight, and he hasn't said 'Ho Ho Ho' for days," said the spokes-elf. "He's just not feeling jolly." [13] ========= ========= FREE SOFTWARE: NETLAUNCH ========= by Randall Sapphire ========= NetLaunch is a tiny, powerful program that sits in your system tray and monitors dial-up Internet connections and disconnections. It can launch programs when a connection is made and close programs when a disconnect occurs. I use it to launch Magic Mail Monitor, Get Right, and several other programs every time I connect to my ISP and to close those programs when I disconnect. You can control the order in which programs launch (if you need to) by setting time delays. NetLaunch provides several options for closing programs from the friendly (which allows the program to ask permission to save files, etc. with a dialog box) to the hostile Quit (close down right now and don't ask me any questions). If you have multiple ISPs, you can provide separate configurations for each, starting and closing different programs in different ways for each ISP if you wish. This program also provides easy but powerful scheduling, allowing you to automatically make and break connections to specific ISPs at specific times. Finally, NetLaunch provide a method to bypass the "Connect To" dialog box and redial a disconnected session if you have an older version of Windows 95 where such things aren't already automated. You will find this free Win9x program at: http://www.blackcastlesoft.com/netlaunch/ The web site mentions that some people have had problems running the program under Windows 98. I haven't nor do I know anyone who has. [14] ========= ========= Cauldron Info ========= NEW ARTICLES ON THE CAULDRON'S SITE ========= The following book review (included in this newsletter) are new to the web site: * After the Ecstasy, the Laundry http://www.ecauldron.com/bkatetl.html * Murder at Witches' Bluff http://www.ecauldron.com/bkmawb.html * Origins of Modern Witchcraft http://www.ecauldron.com/bkoomw.html * Pagan Parenting http://www.ecauldron.com/bkpp.html [15] ========= ========= Cauldron Info ========= NEW WEB POLL ========= Our new polls are working nicely and without all the problems we had when they were hosted offsite. You'll find them on their own web page at: http://www.ecauldron.com/pollindex.php Our newest poll, opened December 1, asks: * Which best describes your concept of deity? (Atheism, Monotheism, Duotheism, Polytheism, Pantheism, Other) http://www.ecauldron.com/cldpoll12.php Make your opinion known, take this poll today! [16] ========= ========= Cauldron Info ========= SUPPORT THE CAULDRON WHEN YOU BUY BOOKS AT AMAZON.COM ========= If you wish to purchase books or other items at Amazon.com, you can help fund The Cauldron's web site by using this link to access Amazon.com when you make your purchases: http://www.ecauldron.com/fradambooks.html Just use this link to go to Amazon.com via our web site and almost every purchase you make that visit will earn The Cauldron a small amount to help pay for our web page -- at no extra charge to you. You can also use the Amazon link on the menu of every Cauldron web page and not have to remember this long link. Unlike the Amazon link listed in some prior issues of this newsletter, you can simply visit this site and save the link in your bookmark list. If you then use this bookmarked link every time you wish to visit Amazon.com, any purchases you make while there will help fund The Cauldron's web site. [17] ========= ========= Cauldron and Thicket Info ========= CAULDRON CHATS: TUESDAYS, 10-11PM CDT ========= [NOTE: The PaganPaths server has been down the last couple of weeks. Chats will resume when it comes back up.] Cauldron Co-Host Randall Sapphire hosts a one hour general chat almost every Tuesday evening from 10pm to 11pm Central (Daylight) Time in our channel (#thecauldron) on the PaganPaths IRC server. We usually have a pretty good turnout. Discussions cover a wide range of topics, depending on what the folks present want to discuss. You'll find all the information you need to connect to our chats either with your own IRC client or via the Java IRC client (including images of the various Java windows which pop up) on our Chats web page at: http://www.ecauldron.com/cmchats.html You can open a Java chat client directly to #thecauldron by clicking on the "IRC Chat" link in the menu of any of our web pages, but we strongly suggest you visit the above page first and read a few paragraphs on how to use it. This page is also available from the "[Info]" link right next to the "IRC Chat" link on our web page menus. If you have your own IRC client program, the address of the main PaganPaths server is: madison.wi.us.paganpaths.org (port 6667) If you'd like to host a chat for members of The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum on a regular, weekly schedule, please let us know. If "Central Time" doesn't mean anything to you, this an online time converter at http://sandbox.xerox.com/stewart/tzconvert.cgi might help. I think Central Time is listed as something like "US - Central" in the drop down box. [18] ========= ========= NEWSLETTER AND FORUM INFO ========= (Including how to subscribe and unsubscribe) ========= Cauldron and Candle is a free publication of The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum with assistance from our sister form, The Witches' Thicket. The Cauldron and The Thicket aim to publish this newsletter twice a month and often actually succeed in doing so. Copyrights on individual items in this newsletter are retained by their author, please contact the editors if you need to contact an author for permission to reprint an article and the editors will do their best to put you in touch with him or her. No one involved in producing this newsletter has any money to speak of so suing us if you don't like something we do is a waste of time and money. ++++ ++++ HOW TO SUBSCRIBE OR UNSUBSCRIBE ++++ You are receiving a copy of this newsletter because you signed up to receive it. You can subscribe or unsubscribe to this newsletter: http://cauldronnews.listbot.com/ ++++ ++++ NEWSLETTER WEB SITE AND BACK ISSUE ARCHIVE ++++ The Cauldron and Candle web site contains information on this newsletter and an archive of back issues. http://www.ecauldron.com/cnc/ ++++ ++++ PLEASE INVITE YOUR FRIENDS TO SUBSCRIBE ++++ If you have Pagan friends who you believe would be interested in Cauldron and Candle please invite them to subscribe. You can either drop them a note yourself or -- better yet -- send them one of The Cauldron's email postcards with the information. You are also welcome to forward a copies of this newsletter to interested friends and associates provided you forward the entire newsletter. ++++ ++++ LINK TO THE CAULDRON: A PAGAN FORUM ++++ If you like The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum please invite your friends to visit. If you have a web page, we'd really appreciate it if you put a link to The Cauldron's web site on your web pages. If you'd like some graphic buttons to use to link to our web site, check the following URL: http://www.ecauldron.com/linktous.html Thanks in advance. ++++ ++++ SUGGESTIONS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME ++++ Don't forget that your suggestions for the forum are always welcome, either posted on the message board or via email to Elspeth Sapphire (elspeth.sapphire@worldnet.att.net) or Randall Sapphire (rssapphire@ecauldron.com). Typos are, as usual, courtesy of the Goddess Eris. Merry Meet, Merry Part, Merry Meet again!

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