Page of Pentacles
W.
C.
A.
9458 67 Avenue NW
Edmonton, Alberta
T6E 3J9
#70 Oestre 2014 c.e.
Plans and Plots in CWA
Edmonton Wiccans and Pagans at Gay Pride
By Ali Hammington Ravenwood
On February 24th, I had the opportunity to meet with a group of clergy to plan an Interfaith Ceremony for
this year’s Edmonton Pride Festival. Edmonton’s LGBT community has been hosting Pride celebrations since
1980; the Edmonton Pride Festival Society was formed in 1999, and last year the event drew thousands of
participants. 2014 will be the first year that a faith service will take place. The idea was the brainstorm of
James Ravenscroft of St. Albert United Church, who runs a small faith gathering for LGBT folks called Soul
OUTing. James invited myself and another United Church minister, Christina Bellsmith, as well as Native
Elder Ed Lavallee, to meet at the Three Bananas Café to discuss what our ceremony should look like.
Because we’re creating the first of many services in years to come, and we don’t have a road map to follow,
we want to set a high standard for an event that will be meaningful and relevant for everyone in attendance.
Not too much pressure, not at all!
James began by contacting churches who are open and welcoming to the LGBT community and asking us
to participate, but he ended up with a better response that he’d expected. In addition to the four of us at the
meeting, he has also received positive responses from a Unitarian minister, two rabbis, a representative from
an inclusive Muslim fellowship, and even a Catholic priest!
It was decided that each faith would choose one
colour of the rainbow flag, each representing an
aspect of inclusion, and make that the focus of our
prayers. By default, the colour aquamarine fell to me;
it’s associated with Magic and the Arts. (I could also
have taken green, representing Nature, but the Native
Elder appropriately claimed it for himself.)
Edmonton Pride Festival Society is providing
plenty of support for the service, including a choir, and
an art group to make props. We’ll be holding another
meeting in a few weeks, to begin fleshing out the
details of the service. I’m honoured to be able to
participate, and excited to see my Temple joining
hands with other faith groups to further the cause of
equal rights and social justice in Canada. I hope all
Edmonton Witches and Pagans will come out to show
their support .
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Karma, The Just-World Fallacy and the Magick of Action
6 March 2014
written by Lauren Ouellette-Bruchez
(ouellette.lauren@gmail.com )
I am an avid social media user. It’s one of the best
resources at my disposal to conduct business, keep up
on the latest news both personal and worldwide and
to see pictures of kittens and puppies wearing
sweaters and hats…for science, of course. Facebook
also provides a unique opportunity to take a look at
the trends in thought processes and tropes.
One concept resurfaces consistently and has
begun to kind of grate on my nerves. I didn’t quite
understand why I cared at first. I don’t believe in
policing language or expression as I feel that it dulls
the truth. But this thing was really getting to me and
after some thought I figured it out.
The general perception of karma is out of
alignment with its true nature. It’s not an infrequent
occurrence to see a status update boasting that
someone feels vindicated because another person has
done them wrong and “got what’s coming to them”.
Karma as it is understood in Hinduism and Buddhism
is a far more nuanced notion than the vengeancedriven idea of it as is commonly accepted in western
society. While karma is a system of cause and effect
that relates to ethical concerns, it does not work
within the realms of standard human thought or
behaviour. Karma, as it is poorly employed, is far
more representative of the just-world fallacy.
The just-world fallacy is just that; the thought that
the universe operates according to ones own moral
compass. Some people truly believe that if someone
wrongs them or does something “wrong” in general
that the universe will smite them and all will be well.
And of course, if you’re “good”, then good things
happen to you. I have known those whom I believe to
be ethically deficient who have beautiful families,
good health and successful careers. I’ve also known
some amazing souls who have cancer, have lost their
homes and their jobs. This is how the universe
operates. Frankly, it just ain’t fair.
So, why am I writing about this? It seems more
like a general rant than a Pagan Activist blog, right?
Bear with me. I’m a Gemini. I will eventually come to
my overall point but we may have to get there by
route of China first.
The misappropriation of karma and the consistent
arising of the just-world fallacy as a theme in
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Neopagan culture is hurting us. It’s hurting us
because it veils reality in non-functional ways and far
more than you would think. If you consider for a
moment the word activist, its root is the word active.
This implies that action is being taken on the part of
the activist to effect change according to their efforts.
As Pagans, many of us practice magick and ritual,
both of which allow us to connect with deeper
expressions of ourselves and the natural world to also
bring about desired results. Is it any wonder that so
many of us gravitate toward activism?
But so often I find that the just-world fallacy and
bastardized ideas of karma impede our progress.
They rob us of our power. When we decide that
“karma will handle it” or “I don’t have to do anything
because bad people reap what they sow” we have
accepted that we can no longer effect change or
have deliberately chosen not to.
Now before anyone gets all hot and bothered, I’m
not advocating vengeance as a means of handling our
problems. Vengeance is a different animal born of
self-righteousness and egotism. More specifically
what I’m suggesting is reclaiming your ability to
create the world you wish to live in and open yourself
to the idea that those changes begin with “doing”.
The magick of action is something that I never
intended to be more than a personal philosophy and
practice. For a couple of years I worked at a spiritual
supply shop. I interacted with practitioners from all
walks of life and each with their own way of doing
things. Sadly, I began to realize how many people
practised magick as an excuse to say that they were
doing something to bring about positive change. In
reality, they were just spinning their wheels.
But this is just it. We are so convinced of our
inferiority that karma and magick have become our
point of disconnect from personal divinity, which could
not be further from the truth of their presence in our
lives. In regard to activism, so many people believe
that they can’t make a difference but karma, the real
karma itself expresses that every action regardless of
how small is never meaningless. Real magick begins
when you discard the belief that you can’t make a
difference. The ritual is reminding yourself everyday
that while you’re here and breathing that you’re a
living expression of the divine. You don’t have to be
angry or hateful to decide that you refuse to accept
the circumstances you’ve been dealt. You just have to
dig deep and connect to that divinity to find your
courage. This magick will give you the fuel you need
to keep going.
Being an activist is an arduous path and does not
lend itself to satisfying the whims of those looking for
instant gratification. Some days we achieve our goals
and are heard, but there’s a whole lot of
disappointment and conflict before that happens in
most cases. Some days you get arrested. Other days
you receive phone calls and e-mails from loved ones
tearing you down for embarrassing them or not
representing their interests. I’ve known activists
who’ve lost their jobs fighting for their beliefs. And
again, that poor grasp of karma doesn’t help because
we are programmed to wonder, “what have I done
wrong?”.
Ten Years
Dear sisters and brothers in the Craft
This March is the tenth anniversary of the
founding of the Congregationalist Wiccan Association
of BC, the first provincial daughter of the national C.
Witchcraft A. of Canada (1991). It is also the first
anniversary of our clergy in Alberta being able to
perform legal weddings, a milestone here (in BC
since 2004).
CWABC started when I was called to perform a
funeral for a man in the Vancouver Pagan community
whose wife had died suddenly. There had been talk
before of the need for a public meeting place or
public organization to celebrate the Sabbats and
provide services to Pagans but previous attempts had
blown up in massive infighting.
The fact is you may not have done anything
wrong. Even more so, when you accept and embrace
your power it’s a lot easier to grasp that correlation is
not causation. Just because things didn’t turn out as
you’d hoped doesn’t mean you should give up. Doing
the right thing doesn’t always feel good and when you
find disappointment in regard to your cause, you
aren’t being “karmically punished”. Let the power of
your goals energize you. In my opinion the greatest
magick is action. Anyone can half-heartedly anoint
some candles and chant from the comfort of their
own home but it is the successful practitioner who
can transform energy into physical, substantial results.
It is not enough to sign petitions, post a blog or argue
with those who oppose you in a comment thread.
Your actual presence and dedication are the things
required to reach those who otherwise would not hear
you.
My ritual does not stop here. My work begins
when I venture out into the world, risk something
worthwhile, knowing that I may never see the desired
result in my lifetime and continue to try because it is
my will to do so. It is my will that I know failure — to
learn from my mistakes and gain the wisdom to not
make them again. It is my will that I achieve success
in my activism, so that future generations don’t have
to fail the same way I did. I will not be a hapless
bystander in my life or yield my will to that which I
don’t support. My karma is a direct result of my
actions and I can choose to be punished by it or learn
from it. Everyone is gifted these very same choices.
What will you choose?
Religious celebration is wonderful but the deepest
ties are formed and the most profound needs are for
help dealing with pain. When someone is ill, a Temple
will help out, when someone dies, we will mourn
together.
I was Called and had no choice. I pulled up the
bylaws, persuaded my coven-mates and the Priestess
of another coven to read them and adopt them. And
we founded a small church with two Temples. The
other Priestess left and took one other of our founding
members with her a few months later but the
Vancouver Temple continued to meet regularly at
Simon Fraser University.
Then we were contacted by some Pagans in the
Okanagan, and over on Vancouver Island, in 2005. I
travelled to those places every month, to work with
their clergy and congregations, with some help from
another founding member with Nanaimo. And in
2006, we Ordained the clergy of three new Temples.
The Alberta sister church was founded in 2007, a
Saskatchewan sister is in the works and will be
legally founded in April.
We have 5 Temples in BC, 2 in Alberta, 2 in the
works in Saskatchewan, we have above a thousand
people on our contact lists who have been to our
Open Circles and above a hundred members.
I am proud of what we have accomplished and
look to the future with joyful anticipation.
Blessed Be,
Sam Wagar, Priest and Witch
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(Solstices and Equinoxes) to concentrate on
workshops open to members (and those well on the
way to becoming members) and will be announcing
the topics closer to the time.
What’s up with the CWA
Alberta
Edmonton - Ravenwood Temple
The Temple hosts Open Circles the second
Sunday of each month (except August) at Ritchie
Hall, 7727- 98 St., Edmonton, starting at 6 pm. Doors
lock at 6:15, and there is no admission once the ritual
has begun.
Services are open to all adults 18+, and to children
accompanied by a parent. There is no cost to attend,
although donations are accepted to help cover the
cost of space. Please bring a contribution for a
potluck snack to follow. For more information, contact
cwaalberta@gmail.com.
Our popular series of workshops for members is
opened up to the general public again, although our
members get priority in registration. Space for each
workshop is limited, and pre-registration is required.
To register for a workshop, please contact us directly
on Facebook or at cwaalberta@gmail.com and
reserve your spot. Your donation of $10 is appreciated
to help us cover costs.
We send out reminders about a week in advance
of each event and they will be posted on our
Facebook page. The Board wishes to encourage nonclergy members of the congregation to present
workshops in their areas of expertise as well, as for
example Jason’s excellent Tarot workshop.
We hope to move to providing Rituals for the
Sabbats as well as the regular monthly Temple
meetings, but that is dependent on the number of
volunteers and community support that we have.
Open circles are open to adults and to minors
accompanied by a parent. All public services are free
of charge, although they welcome donations to help
with operating costs.
(You also may have noticed that the Priestess,
Anastasia, has finished her series of Sabbat-themed
cookbooks!)
St Albert Provisional Temple
The St. Albert provisional Temple has been
suspended due to lack of interest. The key people
involved have moved and there had not been time to
build a core of volunteers to take over. Priest Sam
Wagar of Ravenwood Temple remains available to
help with any new organizing effort in this area.
British Columbia
The Cottage of Ancient Ways is offering Sabbat
rituals with a strong ‘kitchen Witch’ flavour, Earthy
and grounded in Nanaimo. These happen on the
Sabbats and information can be had from the
addresses below. Each Sabbat ritual is preceded, a
week before, with a workshop on the meaning of the
Sabbat and its ritual markers.
Temple of the Green Cauldron is offering a full
schedule of Sabbats and several public esbats in
Nanaimo.
Aurora’s Grove in Campbell River has a smaller
membership and its’ Priestess’ ill-health has reduced
the amount that is happening there, although they are
keeping up a series of Sabbat rituals and services to
the community.
Red Deer - Shining Star Temple
Shining Star Temple has undertaken a series of
Open Circles for Sabbats since starting the Temple in
September of 2011, on the Sunday before the
Sabbats. They have just started meeting on a farm
just outside of Red Deer, and will arrange car pooling
and send the address to interested people, after
several years at Clearview Community Centre.
Contact cwaashiningstartemple@gmail.com just to be
sure, as the location may change. Our Circles also
start promptly at 6, with the doors locking at 6:15.
They are switching to four Open Circles
The Temple of Mirth and Reverence in Vernon is
collaborating with other Pagan groups and activities in
the Okanagan in the “Temple of the Oak, Hammer
and Star” to offer multi-faith Pagan services and
compensate for a smaller pool of active Wiccans in
the area.
And a restart to the Vancouver-Burnaby Temple,
as a Wiccan study group, is happening, supervised by
Sally Kimber of the Green Cauldron Temple in
Nanaimo.
Temple of the Grove provisional Temple has begun
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'Sabbat Cooking - Mabon',
Vernon- Mirth and Reverence
by Stacy Evans
Clergy: Diane Morrison and Erin McRoy
Phone: 250-540-0341
Contact: mirthandreverence@cwabc.org
Website: http://mirthandreverence.webs.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/
40326656279/
is now available from the publisher’s website:
http://www.wyrdwoodpublications.com/
sabbatcookingmabon.htm
and through Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/
Sabbat-Cooking-~-Mabon-ebook/dp/B00EPMTJ8I
Nanaimo South- Cottage of Ancient Ways
Clergy: Roxanne Allen
Contact: cottageofancientways@cwabc.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/
179755885446830/
Nanaimo North -Green Cauldron
Clergy: Sally Kimber and Meredith Kimber
Phone: 250-758-8332
Contact: greencauldron@cwabc.org
Website: www.greencauldron.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/
greencauldron/
Campbell River- Aurora’s Grove
in central Cariboo area - Williams Lake and
MCLeese Lake area.
Clergy: Pat Stawski
Phone: 250-923-3857
Contact: aurorasgrove@cwabc.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
aurorasgrovetemple
In both BC and Alberta clergy are licensed to
perform legal weddings, and some also are available
for hospital chaplaincy and prison visits.
Central Cariboo (Williams Lake/McLeese
Lake ) - Temple in the Grove
Saskatchewan
The Congregationalist Wiccan Association of
Saskatchewan is still getting organized, with two
Temples in the works, in Regina and Saskatoon. It is
drawing from a pool of long-time community
organizers in the province. The founding meeting will
be held on April 26th and the two Temples will be up
and running for Beltaine or shortly afterward.
Information on what they’re up to at Saskamoon
network: https://www.facebook.com/groups/
81612665654/.
Clergy in Training: Daedryn Young
Contact: daedryn.young@yahoo.ca
Alberta
Edmonton - Ravenwood Temple
Clergy: Alison Ravenwood and Samuel Wagar
Contact: cwaalberta@gmail.com
Website: www.cwaa.ca
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/
143215692628/
CWA Temple Contact Information
British Columbia
5
Sam Wagar publishes a memoir
Samuel Wagar’s
fourth book, a
memoir entitled “I
Know Where the
Bodies are Buried”
was published on
the 13th of
January, the 20th
anniversary of the
start of the
religious
discrimination
scandal when the
BCNDP removed him as a candidate for being a
Witch. Wagar talks about that scandal but also a wide
ranging political career as an anarchist and peace
activist (which included pie-killing a politician, antinuclear protests, and provides fascinating insights into
the hard left in 1980s Toronto), in the NDP and later
Green Party, several differences of opinion in the
Pagan communities of Toronto and British Columbia
through the 1990s, starting a church
(Congregationalist Wiccan Association of BC) and
other community service (an annual festival,
assistance with starting Panfest and the CWAA,
involvement in the Canadian National Pagan
Conference / Gaia Gathering). He also speaks of
areas of his private life - the births of his sons, his
covens, visits that he organized from famous Pagan
friends, and other things. An insightful memoir written
by one of Canada’s Wiccan Elders that will shed
valuable light into parts of our history. And Wagar
cites documents and provides footnotes - the opinions
are his, the facts are real.
It is available through www.amazon.com at $6 from
the ebook, $15 for the real book.
The Biblioteca Alexandrina is an
ambitious Pagan project aiming to “rebuild
the library of Alexandria, one book at a
time” by publishing excellent devotional
anthologies of original work, and some
translations, grounded in solid research, to
deities of the ancient Near East. So far
they have published books on Dionysus,
Artemis, the deities of the ancient Near
East, Erishkegal, and Hecate, among
others. Affordable, well-edited and
produced, beautiful, powerful.
http://neosalexandria.org/bibliotheca-alexandrina/
current-titles/
Red Deer - Shining Star Temple
Clergy: Anastasia Evans
Website: http://cwaalberta.blogspot.ca/p/cwaashining-star-circle-red-deer.html
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/
238828126165537/
All CWA Temples present public rituals on
varying schedules but a minimum of four times a
year. Please contact the Temple in your area for an
exact schedule of upcoming events. As well as the
minimum required public rituals, Temples have a
variety of workshops, religious education events and
participate in larger community events and
celebrations which they also will wish to promote.
Toontown Summer Gathering: https://
www.facebook.com/groups/
toontownspagansummerfest/
Upcoming events in the West
For listings of First Nations’ cultural events:
http://drumhop.com/capowwow.php
http://www.ammsa.com/
http://www.yagotta.ca/activities/powwow.htm
6
Where Faeries Live is back in a new location!
A metaphysical retailer offering classes, get-togethers
and game nights
Offering Pagan/Wiccan supplies, Candles, Wands,
Crystals, Herbs, Magical Oils, Rare and hard to find
items, Books, Incense, Jewellry, Leather Masks,
Corsets, Tarot Cards, Readings
4946 50th Street, lower level
Camrose AB
10-9 Monday to Friday
Find us on Facebook -www.facebook.com/
wherefaerieslive
email - storeinfo@wherefaerieslive.com
4706 Gaetz Ave
Red Deer, AB T4N 4A1
(403) 986-2442
Hours:
Wed-Fri 9 am - 7 pm
ASKEMBLA
Crimson Quill Gifts
110, 8 Perron St.
St. Albert, Alberta
780-418-7803
Monday – Saturday 10:00 am
– 5:00 pm
Closed Sundays & Holidays
Custom Clothing and Costumes
14th Century Northern realms clothing
and lovely Dolls.
780-432-0126
askembla@hotmail.com
Mon: 11:00 - 17:00
Tue -Fri: 10:00 - 18:00
Sat: 11:00 - 17:00
7
Every woman and every man is an embodiment of
divinity.
All acts of love and pleasure are acts of praise of
the Goddess. This specifically includes all noncoercive sexual orientations.
An ye harm none, do what ye will.
Statement of Ethics:
CWA Membership Info:
Membership requirements:
CWA is not a coven or an association of covens
and so we do not require training or Initiation of
people who wish to be members. We do not expect
“perfect love and perfect trust” but a much more
normal level of trust and mutual respect of our
potential members.
Potential members must be legal adults, must
attend at least three of our Open Circles over the
course of a year, sign the attendance book at each of
them, signify in writing that they agree with our
statement of beliefs and our ethic statement (below)
and pay our annual membership fee (currently $25).
Only voting members may vote or be elected to
congregational councils or the provincial council, may
vote to confirm a clergy person to hold our credential,
or train for our clergy.
Clergy training takes a minimum of one further
year, regardless of the amount of previous training or
experience which a person may have.
CWA Statement of Beliefs:
The members of this Society believe:
a/ that the divine is multifaceted and that it is
appropriate to Name and worship a variety of
Goddesses and Gods in a variety of different ways,
b/ that the divine is primarily immanent,
c/ that there are a variety of guardian spirits and
levels of divinity,
d/ that we generally shape our liturgy and theology
around the worship of the Goddess or the Goddess
and the Old Gods,
e/ that the divine is ever-present and ever-active in
the world,
f/ that we can through petition, action, and ritual,
cause change in the world in accord with our Wills.
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All members of this Society must bind themselves
by agreement with the following:
Although there are many Goddesses and Gods and
many Paths to their worship, our path does not
involve;
a/ animal sacrifice,
b/ any coercive activities,
c/ charging fees for teaching the Craft beyond the
recovery of costs, or for Initiation. (Members of
groups may reasonably be expected to share in the
expenses of events sponsored by the group, or agreed
to as part of its obligations as members of this
Society, and voluntary donations will be accepted).
d/ malfeasance,
e/ breaking Priestly confidentiality, subject to the
law,
f/ oath-breaking.
People who wish to become further involved in
our church need not be members to volunteer for
committees (although nonmembers cannot vote) or to
attend basic Religious Education classes (which will
be taught by members and clergy). Just contact the
Secretary of CWA as a whole or your local
congregation’s clergy or congregation council
Summoner / Secretary.
The Secretary of CWAA for 2012-13 is Sam
Wagar and he’s at samwagar@shaw.ca