|
|
Vancouver-Burnaby Temple Report
June 2010
Dear sisters and brothers,
The high point of the month has to be the baby blessing that Cameron and Sam performed for the lovely Teagan at the beginning of June. A lovely little baby surrounding by an adoring and supportive family and friends, in the lush and fertile backyard garden on a sunny afternoon – what could be nicer that to join together and celebrate her life, and to ask the Gods and spirits of nature to support her and her family through her childhood? Well, what was nicer for Sam was that he had performed the parents’ wedding four years before and so there was a deep sense of rightness, of the whole cycle of life here – with the great-grandparents, grandparents, parents, the lovely child. We were pleased to drink a toast in wine made from the plums grown on the tree next to the space where we blessed Teagan, as well.
A low point, just a few days before, was discovering that the divorce of one of the two parties in a wedding that had been in the works for a year had not been finalized. So, a bit more than a month before the date, Sam had to withdraw as the officiant. He is forbidden, as a legally licensed Priest, from performing what looks like a wedding (even a symbolic non-legally binding handfasting) under penalty of a criminal conviction (section 294 of the Criminal Code of Canada). The couple have found another person to perform the handfasting but this was very disappointing and embarrassing.
After the Board of the CWABC approved a policy around polygamous and polyandrous marriages, Sam swore an affidavit that will be introduced as supporting evidence in the court case challenging the law against polygamy (section 293 of the Criminal Code). This important court case will test whether this law is a reasonable limit on the religious freedoms guaranteed in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It was originally prompted by the situation of the polygamous Mormon church, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, and the aborted prosecution of two leaders of factions of that church on polygamy charges, but it also concerns Muslims, whose religion permits polygamy, and practitioners of many traditional religions as well.
We make a distinction between polygamy, in which one man has several wives but women cannot have several wives or husbands, and polyamoury, in which several adults of whatever assortment of genders are all romantically involved with one another. The first is Patriarchal, based on male dominance, and the second is egalitarian, with all equal parties. The first does not fit with our theology, the second does.
It will be November before the first stage of this case comes to trial in the BC Supreme Court, after which it will very likely go through the BC Court of Appeals and to the Supreme Court of Canada for final decision. In all likelihood, it will be a minimum of three years before the question is resolved.
Another unfortunate note this month was that due to an accident at work (Sam slipped on some wet grass and threw out his back) the May Full Moon Open Circle was cancelled. However the Mead making workshop two days later was a success and the mead should be ready to taste, if all goes well, by May of 2011. Other workshops on reiki and on tool-making as well as song and chant sharing are in the works, all to happen in Surrey.
The next Open Circles for the Vancouver-Burnaby Temple will be the 25th of June and 23rd of July, both at Metrotown Mall’s Community Meeting Room above the Sears store, beginning at 7pm.
Blessed Be
Sam Wagar
Priest, CWABC
Thank you Ryan, Jacqueline and Nancy for sponsoring Beltane this year. Our sponsorship program is going very well, a sponsorship covers rental of a hall or park, supplies etc. . The donation by sponsorship is greatly appreciated and allows us to make our rituals all they can be.
We celebrated the Ordination of Ivannia Halls, which was written by Clergy Roxanne and was well attended. Ivannia was one of the original members of the temple to go through CIT, it was an honor for Sally to present her with her stole and it was emotional. Ivannia and Jon will be moving to the Interior and have plans to start a temple once they are settled.
A Blessingway was held for Kat and James, it was written by Meredith. their daughter is due May 1st and we are all estatic for Lyric’s arrival. Kat is in the process of having a belly casting done in honor of this little jewel.
The Introduction to Wicca class has now completed, of the 18 students, 12 will be taking part in the graduation ritual being held on April 21st. A list has already been started for the starting of the next class.
Ostara had more people than expected, a whopping 42 people attended. The fundraiser was the finishing of remaining books in our donation library. Sally wrote the ritual and there was much singing and merriment. The following day Sally, Meredith and Kam went to Courtenay for an Ostara ritual there. The Courtenay group is growing and we were delighted to welcome some local entertainment…we had a young Christian couple attend the ritual and express their concern for our soul sin tongues. After much yelling on their end and chanting on ours…they were given a police escort from the building. It was a great help having members of the ATC present and holding the energies and chanting with us. We will be returning for Beltane, it will be interesting to see the response and we will report on how it works out.
There has been a Meet and Greet Learning Circle started in Ladysmith, it is hosted by Heatherly and attendance is growing and seems to be very accepted in the community. The last circle covered grounding and centering. Aprils meeting will be about Living a Pagan Life.
Nanaimo coffee nights..we have continued to show movies with coffee and meeting after. We have completed the Burning Times series, and many people expressed that The Full Circle movie was the best. we will continue in this vein and show new movies each meeting.
Due to popular request we will be doing the occasional full moon esbat..with the first one being May 27th. Details will be posted on our website. These will be similar to what we have done in the past with a formal esbat being done once per year, more than likely in the fall when we move back inside.
Meredith is planning on starting the Moon school up again, it will be parent participation, anyone interested should contact Meredith.
Pagan Pride is in the beginning stages of this years planning, we are beginning to do paperwork and such to get the ball rolling.
Well, winter depleted our Temple fund in the low Yule attendance, but we’re gearing up for Spring and shaking off the last of the winter blahs! We have a couple of great events coming up!
To start with, on the 20th of March at noon, at her store The Threads That Bind Us, I will be presenting the first of my intensive workshops in the Eightfold Way of Wicca, the “Eight Paths of Power.” My first workshop is on Intent, using concentration, meditation and focus to form your Will to make magick. Registration in advance is preferred; CWA members FREE, non-members $25. This is not your typical Practical Magick class and we look forward to everyone coming out!
Then, at 6 pm on the same day, the Ostara ritual will take place at the same location. We hope to have an Ostara egg hunt for the children so please let us know how many children will be attending! As usual, it’s free, and all are welcome, though donations are appreciated. The main reason we have been having all the events at my shop is because I can donate the space for free and there is no money in the kitty.
Erin and I intended to offer a Wicca 101 for a $50 registration fee to cover expenses for 9 classes, but there was insufficient registration to justify it by the launching date. If there is still interest, I invite people to contact me.
Practical Magick is continuing on alternate Wednesday nights. For a complete event listing, check out our website at http://mirthandreverence.webs.com.
We are excited to be gearing up for the first CWABC Pagan festival in our area! Details are still being finalized, but keep informed at the event website for the Starfall Pagan Festival: http://starfallpaganfest.webs.com!
Blessed be,
Sable
Spring is bringing changes and an increase in activities for our Temple. Luckily, we have many people willing to lend a helping hand!
I would like to start by saying “thank you” to Devon for sponsoring Ostara’s ritual. The sponsorship of a Sabbat has been a boon for the Temple and covers rental, altar supplies, and any special needs for the ritual.
We are celebrating the Ordination of Ivannia on March 7. Ivannia will be a great asset to the organization. She is a strong individual and brings a touch of her Costa Rican heritage to her rituals. It is quite remarkable that all the “original” group from before CWA days has gone on or is presently undertaking the training for clergy. Congratulations Ivannia!
We are sorry to be losing Ali who has managed the Nanaimo membership lists for the past few years. We hope her forthcoming move goes smoothly and she settles quickly in her new home. Membership reports to the CWA Board will be passed over to Roxanne.
We have recently changed the format of our monthly coffee nights. After a brief social period, we are showing a movie. We started with ‘The Burning Times’ and we had a lively discussion afterwards. We will continue with ‘The Goddess Remembered’ on March 10. We have quite a collection of short movies and documentaries to show during the months we are indoors.
Speaking of coffee nights— there is now a monthly coffee meeting in Ladysmith. Anyone interested can get more information from Heatherly. Hopefully the dates will be posted on the Temple website calendar.
Several people in the Courtenay area asked us if we could do some rituals up their way. Our first visit was at Imbolc and we will return for Ostara on March 21. The feedback was very positive and we have been asked about bringing some of our different programs up to share with them.
Our Introduction to Wicca classes started in February with an excellent turnout of 18 people. The course material is changing and growing as we go along. Our aim is to cover the basics and give people an idea of who we are and what we do so that they are able to make an informed decision as to whether or not Wicca is the path for them. The graduation class will be in April.
The Temple will be hosting Nanaimo Pagan Pride Day once again this year. The event takes place on August 28 in Departure Bay. We will be fundraising for Nanaimo Regional General Hospital. We are presently getting some of the paperwork done but will soon be out in full force with fundraising events.
We were sorry to learn that Millizza’s Cave had closed. Many of us were regular shoppers in this fantastic rock and crystal store and appreciated Laura’s help and knowledge. We have learned that Lobelia’s Lair will now be carrying a selection of crystals so we will not have to travel far for supplies.
Nanaimo’s Temple rep position is being taken over by Heatherly. She will sit in with me this next month and get caught up on what the job entails and meet the CWA Board. I have enjoyed the experience but feel it is time to move on to other things.
In closing, I would like to say thank you to all those people who support the Temple of the Green Cauldron. You have helped in creating a strong base for us to grow on and we couldn’t have come this far without you!
Sally Kimber
CWA Nanaimo
Vancouver-Burnaby Temple update
Dear sisters and brothers,
The month of January was busy, with the first meeting of the Pagan Singles group (a flop, but we’ll try again this month), and two Full Moon Temple meetings, on the 9th and 29th , with eight and four people in attendance, respectively.
Because of the Olympics turning our region upside down we’re not sure if our preliminary booking with Metrotown will be honoured or not, so there might not be a Temple Open Circle in February. The Pagan Singles Meetup will be on the 15th, at the Tim Horton’s on King George Highway in Surrey near Surrey Centre Mall.
After a period of sleep through the Yule madness period a private coven run by the Temple clergy is again accepting applications for members. Contact samwagar@shaw.ca for more information. Other covens including Temple members and friends are encouraged to contact him for inclusion in our listings.
Sam attended a community potluck organized by local Druid Ian on the 23rd, which was a lot of fun. About thirty people of all ages showed up for good food and camaraderie. There is a Special General Meeting of the Gathering for Life on Earth Society coming up – it is likely that the event will either have to move or substantially increase its fees due to a doubling of the rental costs of the venue and there is little time to search for a new location www.gatheringforlife.org . Planning is also well underway for the 6th annual Canadian National Pagan Conference in Guelph, Ontario – Sam is on the Board and the co-ordinator of the academic stream www.gaiagathering.ca .
That’s it for this month,
Blessed be,
Sam Wagar
Priest, Van-Burnaby
The Vancouver-Burnaby Temple has not been
very active in the past year, for a variety of reasons.
From Samhain ‘08 to Samhain ‘09 we hosted six
Sabbat Open Circles, with an average attendance at
seven people. We hosted seven monthly coffee
meetings, with an average attendance at eleven – due
to lack of volunteers we passed them on to someone
else in July. We performed no weddings this year.
Our contact list remains much healthier than our
membership. Our voting membership declined to two
members this year, a reflection of the continued small
number of people that are regularly involved in our
activities.
The Canadian National Pagan Conference in May,
which we had hoped would bring notable Pagans
from around Canada to Vancouver and provide a
stimulus to greater community depth and growth, was
not successful. Because of the economic situation
and a campaign against the conference by opponents
of the chief organizer, only 33 people attended and
only 10 from BC. So, a great deal of time and effort
for little return.
The AGM, on the 21st of November in Surrey,
resolved to change the schedule of our Open Circles
to Full Moon Esbats, to increase the amount of
outreach that we give to the Pagan-friendly but not
yet Pagan communities, and to open up our library to
our membership.
Our Priestess pro-tem, Cameron, is commencing
4
her formal training toward ordination. Our Priest,
Sam, has an academic publication on the Great Rite in
the Journal of Religion and Popular Culture (22.1), an
online peer-reviewed journal.
Temple of the Phoenix (Penticton)
The Temple of the Phoenix has not been very
publicly active over the past year due to the loss of
members and morale with the division into two
temples and the dissolving of the second Penticton
Temple. The ill-health of the Priest and some other
members of the Temple have compounded these
problems.
The Temple may close down in the new year, as
several core members are moving to Kelowna.
Temple of the Green Cauldron (Nanaimo)
year end report for November 1, 2008 – October
31, 2009
This past year has been busy for the clergy and
clergy-in-training. Fortunately, we are over the
starting and growing pains, and most of our year falls
into place smoothly. New contacts are made weekly
through the Temple website and phone number.
All of the Sabbats were celebrated and attendance
remains high.
Esbats were cancelled in the spring and we have
encouraged interested groups to organize study
groups or covens. We are willing to help groups get
started. Esbats may be offered occasionally
throughout the year.
Coffee nights were hosted each month at Tim
Horton’s for the most part. We have moved some of
them into the Harewood Activity Centre to allow for
different activities to take place. This next year shall
see the location changed to suit the activity on those
nights, so please check the Temple calendar!
We taught our first “Introduction to Wicca” course
from November to February and were delighted to
have 9 graduates. Many of these people have
become regular attendees at our events and a
welcome part of our community.
Once again, Pagan Pride Day was a success.
Although the economy is playing havoc with many
lives, we were still able to raise over $900 for the
Nanaimo Regional Hospital Foundation. We have
signed a contract with them for the upcoming year as
well. Last year we had requested that the funds
raised be used in the Children’s Surgery Unit and this
time our aim will be to help with the new Emergency
Room renovation.
This year we dissolved the Board of Stewards.
The members have done excellent work over the
years but many of the positions were held by clergy
or CIT’s and the meetings were a repeat of the
clergy meetings. Stewards will probably be required
to take over the business side of running the Temple
when our membership has increased.
Apart from Sabbats and Esbats, clergy and CIT
duties broke down to approximately:
Hospital visitations: 54
Counselling: 256 hours
Handparting: 1
Spell requests: 32
Workshops presented: 2
PPD: included 4 workshops and 2 rituals
Introduction to Wicca: 9 graduates
Teaching/training given: 175 hours
Interviews/Talks: 4 interviews and 3 talks we
were invited to give
Upgrade training received: 148 hours
The numbers continue to grow and keep all of us
busy as our membership and area we reach out to
increases.
The coming year will see the completion of
training for two of our Clergy-in-Training candidates:
Roxanne Allen and Kam Abbott. Congratulations and
love to them both.
In closing, we would like to thank those who
served as stewards over the years, the many
volunteers who made Pagan Pride a success, and all
the members and people who are a part of our
extended community. Without you the Temple would
cease to be.
Blessings for the upcoming year.
Temple of Mirth and Reverence (Vernon)
Annual General Meeting
November 11th, 2009 AGM
5583 Silver Star Road Vernon B.C.
Present: Diane, Steve, Erin, Brenda, Shanna
Absent: Myranda, Michael, Tammy
Called to Order: 4:14pm
Erin invoked, Thoth, Athena, Mother Earth and
Father Sky in the opening prayer.
Officer’s reports
Chair: We currently have no membership director,
as she left for health reasons. I found that the work
was incomplete and it appears she didn’t do anything
anyways. I have been getting things together with the
help of secretary, updating the attendance database
and what not. All guest books prior to last Yule have
gone missing, and I will be contacting old director to
see if they can be found so we can keep accurate
records. We have cancelled the Woman’s mysteries
night and Pagans men’s night due to insufficient
participation. I have started a new witches question
and answer night.
Vice chair: I have been pretty lax on temple things
because the chair has been doing a wonderful job and
nothing needed my attention. This year I have mostly
been focused on doing priestly duties.
Summoner: There is no-one in this position to
report. Anything chair had to report about this position
was in her report.
Public Relations: There was very little press
attention this year. I think this is due to people getting
use to us. I continued to put information on posters
and community notices. I have made a Facebook
page, and I use this as our main source of advertising
of local temple goings on. I have also been advertising
on Witchvox. Fell behind on using the community
calendar during summer but got it done the rest of the
year. Attendance has been down; I figure this is
because no one has been contacting anyone on the
contact list about the rituals and events in some time.
Scribe: I fell behind in the monthly reports as there
was nothing to report. However reports have now
been filed with provincial. Page of Pentacles’
submissions have been sent on time when applicable.
I have not been posting to yahoo group as there was
concern about privacy issues. I feel other options
should be looked at if we still want to post minutes
somewhere or I will need to be refreshed on the
process there if I am to post there still. This can be
addressed in new business.
2
Treasurer: Temple in the black $95.52. Samhain
2009 was very good on donations. Myranda and
Michael donated hall rental twice and two rituals
were held at our home so we did not have rent to pay.
I will issue a receipt to Myranda for Imbolc and
Samhain 2008 hall rentals.
Priest: We have done every Sabbat, attendance
low but we found out why (see Chair report). Rituals
went well. I like working with my Priestess and
congregation, and will continue to do this job for a
long time. This year I preformed one wedding, and
fortunately no funerals or hospital ministry this year.
Priestess: This year I preformed two weddings;
one couple has been involved with the temple since
near the beginning and one for the chair and
treasurer. I also preformed one Wiccaning, as well as
counselling work. There was less teaching needed
this year. I am not currently offering classes other
then the practical magic at The Threads that Bind Us.
Our Temple made a donation of the 1st 4 taped
classes to each other temple. The Library at the
threads continues to bring in $5-$10 a month for the
temple. Also did two 2nd degree initiations and two
1st degree initiations this year.
Election of New offices:
Steve has stepped down from council and does not
accept any nominations.
Diane nominates Shanna, Diane, Erin and Brenda
to be the new board.
All in favour. Board voted in by acclamation.
New board will consist of:
Chair: Brenda. This year this position will also be
responsible for sending the monthly treasurer report.
Vice Chair: Erin. This position has not changed.
Treasurer: Erin. This year this position is not
responsible for sending a monthly report.
Summoner: Diane. This year this position is not in
charge of compiling the attendance database.
Communications: Diane. This year this position is
responsible for Page of Pentacles submissions.
Scribe: Shanna. This year this position is not in
charge of Page of Pentacles submissions, but it is in
charge of compiling the attendance database.
Temple Rep: Diane.
Old Business:
None
New Business:
Changing to member only events- Beltane and
Samhain will be member’s only events to encourage
more people to become involved. All other events will
be open to the public.
Pagan pride 2010- Erin feels like locally this event
is a lot of work for too little return. Diane feels
membership is down and thinks this is a good way to
let people know we are still here. Penticton’s
community is floundering and we can reach out to
them. Diane is willing to set up a booth from her store
and reach out to other people to vendor as well.
Diane we will be the pagan pride co-ordinator. If we
cannot raise enough to do this event by mid-summer
we will not do this as the temple can’t afford to do it.
If we can raise enough to rent the area we will go
ahead. Date would be in September.
Bank account-Diane thinks we need a bank
account, Brenda and Erin agree. Sable feels we
should look into credit union, Brenda feels we should
shop around. Erin will look into creating one after
shopping around.
Temple Yahoo group- This group is not being used.
All important records will be pulled off this site and
people signed up to this group will be notified where
we are moving the group to and that we are closing
this group. Privacy policy issue is a concern. Diane
will look into creating a temple specific website by
Yule. Yearly minutes can be stored on the site, with a
link to the site from Facebook and we will talk to
provincial about putting a link to our temple site from
the provincial site.
Yule- We are renting the hall in Winfield for
Saturday Dec 19th. Event from 4pm-8pm with ritual
start time at 5pm. This will be a Pot Luck event with
donations for the food bank or Pagan’s in need.
Pagans in need- We have agreed to do a Food
drive for Pagans in need. We are also looking for
donations of clothes or gifts to cheer up the holidays
for pagans in need.
Next meeting
TBA
Good of the temple
Erin has surgery coming up to repair his arm,
magick to help him.
Magick to help catch the thief who robbed the
Threads that Bind Us.
Thanks to Louis who has been a great support to
people in our temple.
Tammy and Doug have been ill, Magick for their
health and finances.
Prayers for Graham’s safety who has gone
overseas to Afghanistan.
Diane motions to close, Erin seconds.
Mother Earth, Father Sky, Thoth, Athena released
in closing prayer by Erin.
Meeting Adjourned 5:31pm
|
|
