Covenant of WISE, Church of Wicca, A.T.C. , Inc.
Lammas



Lammas – 15º Leo


On or about August 1

  • Waning Light, Height of Summer

  • Focused on exploring our relationship to collective consciousness or group

  • Seeks to win the approval of the group by being special

  • Reaping the rewards of your efforts, goals reached

  • Recognizing and Honoring Sacrifices made to achieve goals

Lammas – Correspondences

  • Colors – Red, Gold, Yellow, Orange

  • Gods – Holly King, Mother Aspect

  • Direction – South West

  • Corn, Hay, Gourds, and Harvest Items

  • Magic – Offering Thanks for the sacrifices made by others on our behalf, honoring our fathers, healing the wounds of childhood

Lammas is a celebration of the First Harvest.  It is time that we begin reaping the rewards of all the hard work we have done in our yearly incarnation.  You desire to reconnect, and the first step in that is recognizing that you did not achieve your goals alone.  There were many helping you along the way.  It is time to give thanks to those who have nurtured, supported and encouraged you on your path.  We offer thanks and share our bounty with those who shared our burden.

It is basically the Wiccan equivalent of Fathers Day.  We honor the Holly King for his sacrifice, and recognize that the sacrifices made by the men in our lives are many.  We are not taught to recognize all the sacrifices that our fathers make for us.  They leave early in the morning, and come home late, and we have no idea what goes on in their lives while they are gone.  But, they leave behind their hearts, and they bring home what is necessary to keep us warm, safe, and happy. 

Now that many mothers are working too, we have shared burdens and the sacrifice of our fathers goes even less noticed.  It is important to recognize that men express their love differently from women, and value them for their contribution.  Just as women want to be valued for their contribution to the family, men need to be honored and valued as well. 

Those of us, who have been hurt by neglectful fathers and husbands, should recognize that it is possible that they were neglectful because they were never allowed to embrace their Holly King status by sharing in the powerful moment of your birth.  Maybe they couldn’t make the sacred transformation required because they haven’t been taught their own sacredness in the circle of life. 

As women struggle to reach our own sense of self-worth and sacredness, we need to realize that men have lost the connection with their sacredness as well, and only through healing both sexes will we find wholeness.  If you have lessons to learn here, finding some way to express gratitude to the men who have made you who you are today is a very healing ritual, and a big step towards balance and wholeness.

I grew up with a strong hatred towards men.  I was taught that they were to be blamed for everything that was wrong with my world.  I grew up despising my father, even though he was always there when I really needed him.  He was far from perfect, but he was there, doing the best he could.  When I showed up one August with gifts of appreciation and a letter expressing my thanks, he was stunned and it has completely changed the nature of our relationship.

In ancient times, our myths and legends tell us that Kings were wed to the land, and sometimes sacrificed to the land to bring forth it’s bounty.  Today, we can recognize and honor the sacrifices of our own Holly Kings, and ritualize their gifts to us so that we may raise our awareness of what they bring to our lives. 

Our own Holly King, Lord Keslevar, sacrifices time with his family, personal aspirations, possessions, money, and physical labor so that we may have the covenstead and a full-time Priestess to serve the needs of the coven.  None of this would be possible without him.

So at Lammas we give thanks and honor the God for all that he provides, and for all the bounty that we enjoy, and our own personal Holly Kings, recognizing the sacrifices they make to provide for our safety and well-being.  A personal ritual could consist of making corn chowder and taking a card to your father, or writing a letter and mailing it, or even expressing your pain towards your father in writing and releasing it by burning it. 

Remember that by focusing on what your father did right, you can change the way you remember your past, and therefore change what you received from your childhood.  There is much magic that can be done here.
 

Lammas Ritual

This is a very simple ritual, but it brings forth a lot of memories, and a real sense of connectedness. 

Preparation:  Build an effigy of the God out of sticks, that ends up looking much like the Blair witch symbol.  We make bundles out of hay that can be tied on to the effigy.

Cast circle and call quarters and invoke as usual. 

The effigy is dedicated to serve as a symbol of the God.  Valerian, one of our members, wrote the following incantation for this purpose.

Great Sun God, Lord of the grain, You who are known by many names
Lugh, Tammuz, Adonis, Dionysus, Balder- It is time!
The summer has been very long.
Lay thy shadows on the sundials and on the meadows, Let the winds go loose!
Command the last fruits that they shall be full, Press them on to fulfillment and drive the last sweetness into the heavy wine.
We thank thee for your sacrifice, For the bounty of the harvest
The grain that sustains our body, The divine spark that ignites our souls
The love that nourishes our hearts.
So mote it be.

The HPS states the purpose of the ritual is to express gratitude to the God.  Three times a charm, so once to HP, once to God, and once to Personal Holly King (father figure)

Each covener picks up a hay bundle, approaches the effigy and expresses gratitude while affixing the hay bundle to the stick figure.

After everyone has said his or her piece the Priests light the effigy and we all hold hands and watch it burn. 

Golden Corn Seed Blessing

The chalice is placed on the pentagram plate that is covered in corn seeds. 

HPS (to HP) – “Come unto me once again so that we may plant a seed that will emerge in the new year.  (holding up the Chalice) As the Chalice is to the woman.”

HP – “The Athame is to the Man.” (Placing Athame in Chalice)

HP/S – “Joined together they are one.”

HPS – “I bless this cup that it shall hold the seeds of rebirth within it.  This cup will be placed upon our coven altar, and remain until Imbolc when we can return these seeds to the soil that they may sprout and grow.  I place the seed of prosperity as we harvest the fruits of our labor.”

 (Pass around the cup and plate) The seeds are picked up by each coven member, blessed with a wish, and placed into the cup.

Cakes and Wine

Close circle.

 

Covenant of WISE, Church of Wicca - ATC, Inc. * 2370 Ebenezer Rd. * Conyers * GA * 30094