Beltane Happenings

Happy Beltane to you, Capital Witch readers! So busy is this weekend that I doubt very many of you will even have a chance to read this before the festivities come to a close. With today/tomorrow being one of the biggest holy days on the Pagan calendar(s) and Monday the 2nd being International Pagan Coming Out Day, the time I take to write this out will be the only time I sit down this weekend. Add to that (warning, personal plug ahead) my ordination is tomorrow in conjunction with the Beltane festivities of my church (more on that tomorrow).

Let's start off with a rundown of some of the top gatherings of the weekend

Weekend
Blue Ridge Beltane

Saturday, April 30th
Mountain Mysteries Beltane
Gnostic Mass at Free Spirit Beltane


Sunday, May 1st
Firefly Beltane Ritual / Initiation / Ordination
Connect DC Beltane Ritual
DC Radical Faeries
Turning Circle Maypole Dance
Sacred Circle- Beltane Open Circle

And finally, don't forget that Monday is our local DC observance of International Pagan Coming Out Day! The rally/ritual will be held right at the White House. In its first year, the IPCOD gathering isn't something you want to miss.

That's all I have for now. I hope everyone has a safe and merry sabbat on this gorgeous weekend in the District!

Trouble Brewing for Blue Ridge Beltane

5/9 UPDATE: We have received word that due to scheduling conflicts, the Frosts will not be attending Blue Ridge Beltane this year.

Blue Ridge Beltane has been a beloved tradition in the Northern Virginia area for many years. The event, which has its roots beginning in 1995, seems to have evolved into a cultural tradition for many Pagans and Earth-honoring folks in the area. However, the arrival of two highly controversial speakers this year has sparked a heated debate that has put the festival in the hot seat by the community. Gavin and Yvonne Frost, founders of the Church and School of Wicca and authors of The Good Witches Bible will be holding workshop presentations throughout the festival program.

For those unclear about the controversy surrounding the Frosts, I point you to these posts on The Wild Hunt which highlight them quite well. The most heated topic concerns the sexual education of adolescent Wiccans by their parents, a topic that has enraged many known Pagan leaders for years including AJ Drew who waged a full campaign against them years ago. The Frosts are no strangers to controversy, having made offensive statements about gay Witches not actually being Witches, a stance they had later recanted. I encourage you to read the details of the issues on your own via the link above.

I wouldn't have bothered to mention the Frosts presence if it weren't for the tips we received from an anonymous source that the Blue Ridge Beltane community has been shaken by the announcement that they'll be there. Allegedly, frequent festival goers are reporting changing their plans and not attending at all. We have even been made privy to allegations that the festival has censored feedback on the Frosts by removing comments from their yahoo group. Festival organizers could not be reached for comment.

Upon observing the festival website, you can see that it takes quite a bit of digging to even see that these "big name Pagans" are going to be there. Could this be to give all presenters equal footing, or because of a regretful decision on the choice of speakers? We'll let you decide that one.

What are your thoughts on the Frosts presenting at Blue Ridge Beltane? Do you think the festival organizers should be censoring communication on its message boards? Weigh in via the comments below.

Musing: Covens and the Power of Family

On Friday night, my coven held its annual "Coven Bonding Night." This was our second year of gathering in April to reconnect with each other on a purely social basis and to learn more about some of our newer members. The night consisted of "getting to know you" games like to Two Truths and a Lie and Apples to Apples. We sat around a table of food and shared stories of love, humor and even embarrassment. We took this time before the busy Beltane season to get back to the heart of what it means to be a coven, what it means to be a family.

I mention this because it got it me thinking of how we view our smaller communities within the area. The capital region is great about working together on larger community goals. I would even say that DC Pagans work together in ways that many other city communities might envy if they knew. In all our work as a large community, how do we then place equal value and attention to our own smaller family groups? How does the Witch set aside his busy city schedule to meet with his covenmates through the month? How might the Heathen connect with the members of her kindred when there isn't important religious work to be done? In exploring these questions, my own coven's solution is to simply be mindful of setting aside social interaction that is simply "just for us" where we spend important time in isolation from the larger community every so often. We must build our own power, own own egregore to be of stronger use to the greater Pagan community at large. When we strengthen our bonds as a small family, we end up having so much more to give back.

Considering this of our own groups brings up an interesting question; where do you place the balance of your time? With all there is to do, how do we make sure that we're engaging in our small group work, while still being productive and contributing to the work of our larger community? The answer is probably not a simple one and I expect it to vary widely between every group. The way I see it is in how I view each individual member of my own coven and the amount of time I've invested into our relationships. Do I know where Jane's parents live? How well do I know about John's childhood and where he comes from? This is information that any type of family might invest the time in knowing. If I don't know more of these intimate details, then perhaps its time to go deeper.

In the psychological study of Group Dynamics, the term "group process" is used to understand the way that a group as a whole works and how it addresses problems and opportunities. American psychologist Bruce Tuckman (1965) described a four-stage model of this process that I think is very apt in looking at the relationship maturity of covens:

    * Forming (pretending to get on or get along with others)
    * Storming (letting down the politeness barrier and trying to get down to the issues even if tempers flare up)
    * Norming (getting used to each other and developing trust and productivity)
    * Performing (working in a group to a common goal on a highly efficient and cooperative basis)

As a Witch, I obviously wish to pursue the "performing" stage with my group as efficiently as possible. If I haven't invested the time in letting my group go through this process in both a spiritual and social way, then chances are I'm hindering the growth of my group in its goal to reach that ideal state of performance.

Imagine if every coven, grove or other group in our region were actively working towards this process. Many are, but do we know that we all are? Examining the goals of our smaller groups allows us to reflect on our larger goals as a community and the best ways complete them. Sharing our group activities with the larger community to the best allowance of our oaths and traditions could be a constructive method in building a sense of transparency and trust in a community burdened with the obstacles that religious secrecy comes with.

Today, I challenge us to examine our relationships with any close group we're involved with. How are those relationships reflective of our relationships with someone outside of that group? How are they different? Coming into a sense of observation of these relationships is what I believe to be the first step in forging a true, strong Pagan community.

Coming Out, On the President's Doorstep

We Pagans in the District often use a saying that reminds me of this post; "go big or go home!". May 2nd is the first annual International Pagan Coming Out Day. IPCOD was inspired by the LGBT National Coming Out Day, started by Robert Eichberg in 1988. The purpose of the IPCOD is to be "a day when individuals, deciding on their own terms, take a step that helps foster a society that truly does tolerate all religions.  It’s also a day when our religious community comes together to support those coming out to a person or group and celebrates the more public emergence of their Pagan identity."

Sponsoring DC's event is the Open Hearth Foundation who just announced that our location will be at the back gates of the White House. Really, if you're going to come out as anything, it might as well be right on the President's doorstep!

Participants should gather at the sidewalk area in front of the White House on Pennsylvania Avenue at 7:45pm. A public coming out ritual will being at 8:00pm, followed by walking to a local resturant for community sharing and celebration.

In addition to the gathering itself, the OHF will also have support volunteers on-site to help those who might find the coming out process difficult or emotional.

CapitalWitch is proudly supporting this event and you can rsvp here or by clicking on the IPCOD icon on the right bar of this page, which will stay live until May 2nd.

I encourage all our readers to come out (literally) and support this important event. The only way to create a world of understanding and respect is to rise up and let society know that we want it and deserve it.

Quick Note: Local Pagan Short Film Wins Award

Last week I received word that the short film I worked on with Iris Firemoon gained some nice attention for the online film festival we entered into. The 2011 InterFath Film Festival received submissions from nearly a dozen faith traditions from all over the world. We were sent a suggestion to enter a film of our own by Pagan elder Selena Fox, who has seen Iris' film work before.

Not only did "The Pagan Path - A Short Documentary" get accepted into the festival, but it also won an award for the "Proclamation of Belief" category! On behalf of Iris and myself, we thank the local leaders who made an appearance and shared their words in the film. It is my sincere belief that little actions like this are just the thing needed to help Pagans gain an equal seat at the table of interfaith community work.

Brewin' at PNO, Baltimore Poll, and More!

DC PNO
April's DC Pagans' Night Out held its event at the trendy downtown 'Bread & Brew'. This one was notable in that its the first event on the new schedule of having DC PNO on the 13th, rather than always on a Friday. The idea of generating new faces seems to have worked as I met several wonderful people who I've seen around the community, yet never had the chance to meet before.

Baltimore Poll
For the nearly one year that the DC bureau of the Pagan Newswire Collective has been reporting, we've focused only on DC (of course) and our VA/MD metro areas. However, its been asked of me a few times to report on a few Baltimore-area events and news happenings. Technically, Baltimore is just as far away from DC as most of the Northern Virginia stuff we report on. Since there is no Baltimore PNC, we would have jurisdiction to cover this area if we wanted. If we move forward with covering Baltimore as well, would you be interested in reading about that? Let us know! Click here to take the poll or simply make your selection below.

Would you be interested in reports from the Baltimore Pagan community here?

Yes! They're basically DCI wouldn't mindNo, I don't care about Baltimore

What's Witchy this Weekend
Of course, our Friday edition would not be complete without a short posting of our top picks for weekend events. Be sure to check our "events" tab for a complete calendar listing provided by the Open Hearth Foundation.

All Weekend
Ecumenicon
Trillium Spring Gathering

Saturday
NOVA Pagan Pathseekers - Vienna, VA
Ethics in Magical Practices Class - Fairfax, VA

Sunday
Firefly Pagan Movie Night - Arlington, VA
DC Radical Faeries

Persephone's Masquerade - Funding A Community Center

On Saturday night, the Open Hearth Foundation held the 2011 Persephone's Masquerade Ball in Silver Spring, MD. The ball has been a regional Pagan tradition for many years but this year is special. This event is the prime fundraiser in the campaign to open a Pagan community center right here in DC. The OHF announced just months ago that the date to secure the center space would be Imbolc of 2012. For this reason, the importance of Persephone's Masquerade was highlighted in ways it never has been before.


The ball this year raised more than $4,000, in comparison to a mere $600 just last year. It seems to me that the community is getting the picture that if we want to make this community center happen, its up to us to make it so.

This year's ball featured entertainment by belly dancer Leila, storytelling by Bardic Hearts and Rhiannon on harp. A riveting live auction showcased bids on a hand-painted portrait of Persephone, a sword, and a hand-made willow staff.

This was my first year at the ball and I really had a wonderful time. I am energized and amped to do my part in getting DC a permanent Pagan Community Center.

Working the Iron Pentacle with Thorn Coyle

The following is a posting from David's personal blog.
Last night I returned from a weekend intensive in New Jersey taught by mystic, musician and teacher T Thorn Coyle. Over the course of two days we worked the iron pentacle- a powerful tool from the Anderson Feri Tradition. Using the word "intensive" is quite an appropriate way to describe the intense transformations that occurred. In the iron pentacle, we learn about calling back the powers of sex, pride, self, power and passion. The circle can be explained in part as the ever encompassing limitlessness of God Herself. I knew I was in for a life changing experience but I had no idea just how much change it would actually involve. I've done workings of the Feri Tradition for years and you might recall my musing on the pearl pentacle that I wrote here almost a year ago.

Right from the very first exercise the energy of the whole room seemed to shift in a way that made it seem like we were moving into some kind of glorious alternate dimension, and indeed we did. Never before have I been able to feel the currents of my body circulating in ways that were almost startling. Thorn prepared us well for these experiences and told us to expect and be open to profound changes in our bodies (all of them). Time seemed to have sped up as five hour chunks of time just flew by like minutes. Normally after intensive class sessions I don't want to do anything but sleep. However, I still had enough energy to head into Manhattan with Iris Firemoon for a few hours on the town. 

Waking up on Sunday morning, I was roaring and ready to go. We finished up on Sunday with the last two points on the iron pentacle and rounded out our work with ritual and ecstatic devotional dance. I'm usually not much of a dancer but this really got me going. As the beat of the drums ran together, the room bubbled over with the tangible breath of our work hovering over us like a storm cloud. It was like being high, the way the gods intended us to be.

Towards the end we were challenged to think of what true gifts we received from the iron pentacle. For me, there were so many that its hard to come out with just one. I suppose if I had to pick one that moved my soul above all the others, it would be power. I feel like my relationship to power shifted into a place of balance and communication. Power was not afraid of me and I was not afraid of it. Further, I learned that my power is my own and that no one has the right but me to manage my life-force but me. I own myself and all my parts. When I'm in a correct relationship with power, I enable others to come into their own as well. There is always enough to go around. Once we establish this, we move into passion that gives us direction for this work. From passion, we return to sex where we reunite with the divine spark of all that was, all that is, and all that ever shall be.

My deepest thanks to the Northern New Jersey Pagan Fellowship for organizing this event, to Iris for sharing in the experience and getting us up there and of course to Thorn for passing on this very valuable teaching. Thorn will be in Ashton, MD in October for a workshop called "Your Divine Work" and so I urge you all to make it a point to mark your calendars and attend if you can.

Sex pride self power passion, blessed be the iron pentacle.

What's Witchy this Weekend?

Now that we're in full swing of the mercury retrograde, I bet you all are certainly ready for the weekend to begin! Tonight I'm hitting the road with Iris Firemoon to the NYC area for a weekend intensive with Thorn Coyle. More on that once I return. For now, I leave you with a sampling of a few great events coming up this weekend.

Friday, April 1
Drum Circle
Fairfax

Saturday, April 2
The Most Excellent Order of the Black Hat
Fairfax

Meditation with La sorcière de la main
Arlington

Sunday, April 3
NOVA Rainbow Pagans: Nature Walk & Cleanup
Herndon

Radical Faeries
DC