Page of Pentacles

Suite 1 -1428 East King Edward Avenue,Vancouver, BC V5N 2V4

C.C.C.C.C.W.W.W.W.W.A.A.A.A.A.B. C.B. C.B. C.B. C.B. C.

#6 - October 2005 c.e.Temple and Congregation News

Vancouver-Burnaby

The Vancouver-Burnaby Temple has relocated. Forthe next several months it will alternate meetings atDouglas College and the Brittania Centre at Napierand Commercial Drive.The Brittania dates will be the first Wednesday of every month in the Family Activity Room, beginningat 7 pm. The Douglas College dates will be the thirdTuesday of each month, although the rooms will likelyshift around.Please contact the Priest at samwagar@shaw.ca forinformation.The congregation has moved but we are continuing tooffer our services to the larger community. We havetaken on the task of assisting in the organization of aPagan student club at Simon Fraser University andare pleased to report that we signed up 26 members atClubs Days. We will offer help to students at otherGreater Vancouver colleges and universities as well.We will be offering a Wiccan Basics course beginningin late November. Details of scheduling and locationwill be available in early November.

Silver Branch (Abbotsford)

The Temple has resumed regular meetings again. TheSilver Branch Temple offers Open Circles on the 1stand 3rd Saturday of each month , beginning at 10:30am, at the Jubilee Lawn Bowling Club, 33680 SouthFraser Way, in Abbotsford (beside the old downtownlibrary).Silver Branch is centred on creative expression. Its’Priestess, Teri Chartier, is licensed to performmarriages in BC. Contact the Temple atsilver_branch@telus.net for more information.

North Okanagan (Vernon-Kelowna)

The North Okanagan congregation worked very hardto pull off a successful Okanagan Pagan Pride Daycelebration on the 24th of September, with 50-oddpeoplew participating, about the same number of people as last year. However, the amount of moneydonated this year covered all of the expenses and left asmall surplus to pass along to next year’s organizingcommittee. It was an excellent time, with a lecture onOkanagan occult history that prompted some peopleto see the occult as a part of the Okanagan, notseparated, a very good ritual in honour of Mabon,composed and performed by the lay clergy of bothOkanagan congregations.On the 25th Sable Aradia, lay clergy for thecongregation, was Initiated to Third Degree in Pagansfor Peace Tradition by Maphis 3rd. Her coven, the layclergy of the South Okanagan CWA, and several otherhonoured guests were present to recognize andparticipate in the rite.The congregation’s Samhain ritual is planned forOctober 27th and it will be holding a RememberanceDay honouring fallen warriors on the 12th of November.Details of the congregation’s activities can be hadfrom SunMoonStar@planet-save.com or 250-549-4100.

South Okanagan (Penticton)

Pagan Pride Day in the Okanagan has come andgone.On September 10th we had a Yard Sale atAngela’s house, which was a Fund Raiser for PPDand we made about $63 to contribute to expenses,even though the day was mostly dull and overcast andwe had to dodge raindrops at times. On September24th, six of us from the Penticton Congregation made

the trip to Kelowna, to participate in the festivities.We all had a good time taking in the activities and joining in the Mabon ritual. Our Priestess Angela leda workshop on Chant and Dance in Ritual. Everyone joined in the Chants with gusto. We really enjoyed“raising our voices to the Goddess”.Our Priest Mike travelled to Nanaimo to lead aworkshop at their PPD and sent us the followingreport: “My visit to Nanaimo was fantastic. It was agreat experience to share in their PPD. The weatherwas a little cloudy but the sun made its appearance acouple of times. There were about 80 people inattandance and it seemed all had a great time. Ibrought Greetings from the Okanagan Valley andenjoyed the wonderful spirit there. I look forward totheir next one.”Our Priestess Angela is entering her final practicumfor her Practical Nursing Programme, so we are allwishing her lots of success and not too many “oopses”! She will also be performing a Baby Blessing andNaming for “our” new baby, Shyla, Jenni’s daughter.Our next workshop will be on “How to Create aRitual” at 12:30pm on October 22nd at the LeirHouse, followed by a Samhain Ritual. Sam Wagarwill be in attendance for both.For details, contact the Summoner jafurtado@uniserve.com or lay clergy Angela atprrrline@img.net and Mike at grunnar@shaw.ca.

Surrey

The Surrey congregation is on hold until furthernotice. Members are encouraged to connect with theVancouver-Burnaby Temple or Abbotsford Temple.

Nanaimo

Well here it is the end of September and we of theNanaimo Wiccan Congregation are just now catchingour collective breaths.September 17th saw the culmination of our mostambitious project to date. The first annual NanaimoPagan Pride Day celebration was a tremendoussuccess. We had the good fortune to secure anoutstanding venue right by the ocean and perfectindoor facilities in case it rained. Father Sky decidedto disagree with the weatherman and gave us a perfectsunny day with a light breeze. We counted 81 peopleattending throughout the day running the full gamutfrom committed pagans to curious onlookers.The festivities included representatives from quite afew pagan paths and practices. Heathen, Aboriginal,Eastern, and Shamanic representatives, and Wiccan of course, all had a chance to present their paths to thepublic, and our literature table had to be refilledseveral times. Merchants offered wares and servicesand entertainers offered song and dance. I particularlyenjoyed Ramona, the belly dancer, but I have yet tofigure out how she manages to roll that sword over somany body parts without dropping it... further study isobviously required.The following weekend was our regular Sabbatservice, this time for Mabon. I must admit I wasexpecting a poor turnout so soon after Pagan Pride. Iwas never so happy to be proven so wrong. We had19 people in circle, our best turnout yet, many of whom were newcomers that I recognized as visitors toour Pagan Pride day. Goddess willing I should be sowrong many times in the future.I received a call from the new Hospital Chaplain lastweek, inviting me to meet with her in response to ourqueries in previous months. I spent a very pleasanthour acquainting the new Chaplain with Pagan/ Wiccan faith and practices, and the NWC and CWA.The outcome of that meeting is that our lay clergywere issued with ID cards and we are designated asthe official hospital pastoral care contacts for Pagan/ Wiccan patients. What that means is that if a patiententers a Pagan path as their spiritual affiliation, theirnames are available to us for pastoral visits.Furthermore if a Pagan patient specifically asks for apastoral visit, we get called. The upshot is thatPagans/Wiccans going to hospital no longer have tofeel alone during a time when spiritual help is oftenmost needed. I strongly encourage all congregations toget in touch with your local hospitals and get put onthe pastoral care list.So things are forging ahead for us. Sabbatcelebrations are growing. We’re planning to beginEsbat (Full Moon) celebrations starting in January.We’re planning the next iteration of the “Wicca 101”course. Busy but productive, and just the way we likeit.ScheduleUpcoming ServicesSABBAT DATE/TIME LOCATIONLughnassadh (Lammas) Aug 6, 6:00pm Bowen Park Picnic ShelterMabon (Fall Equinox) Sept 24, 6:00pm Bowen Park Picnic Shelter

Samhain (Wiccan New Year) Nov 5, 6:00pm TBAYule (Winter Solstice) Dec 24, 6:00pm TBAImbolc (Oimelc) Feb 4, 6:00pm TBAOstara (Spring Equinox) Mar 25, 6:00pm TBABeltaine (Summer) May 6, 6:00pm TBALitha (Summer Solstice) June 24, 6:00pm TBAMore information can be had from witch@telus.net.

Tri-Cities Temple

The Tri-Cities Temple is in the works. It is expectedthat it will be up and running by December. Contactthe Secretary for more information or visit ourwebpage for news and updates.

Pagan Students

The Alternative Paths Club (Pagan Students) atSimon Fraser University has been established.Although it’s sponsored and assisted by theVancouver-Burnaby Temple of CWA it is open tomembers of all Pagan faiths and the genuinelyinterested student of no particular faith.The inaugural meeting will be Thursday the 6th of October from 2:30-3:30 in Forum Chambers, thenext week Wednesday the 12th from 2:30-3:30 andevery week after that until December 9th Fridays from12:30 to 1:30, all meetings in Form Chambers,Maggie Benston Building SFU.Other Pagan students groups or individuals wantingto connect up, please contact samwagar@shaw.ca forthe time being. The club will choose a new executivein a few weeks.

Notices Notices Notices Notices Notices Congregational library collections:

Several of our congregations have been busilycollecting Wiccan and Pagan books to startcongregational libraries for the use of their members.In many places it is difficult to find good Wiccanbooks and in every place it is expensive to acquire agood library so this initiative is going to be veryhelpful to the membership. Vernon-North Okanaganhas acquired a copy of Robin Skelton

The Practice of Witchcraft

and Helen Berger

A Community of Witches: Contemporary Neo-Paganism and Witchcraft in the United States

. Other congregationsare collecting the books on our Clergy TrainingReading List as well. Donations of books in decentshape will always be appreciated and will help buildthis important resource for your community.

Paid Advertising:

A page or two will be set aside for advertisementsfrom those members and adherents who operatebusinesses. A full page advertisement will cost $50(16x22 cm), a half-page $30, a quarter page $20, aneighth-page $10. Smaller advertisements will getprecedence. BMP, JPG preferred (send disc) althoughscanner ready copy is also fine. Payment mustaccompany ads (cheques or money orders made out toCongregationalist Wiccan Association). In generaladvertisements from people not affiliated with CWAwill not be accepted and the editor reserves the right torefuse any advertisement.

Ritual library:

Our library of rituals and training resources isgrowing and slowly being indexed. We hope to makeit available to the membership in the next couple of months. Members and friends can send in rituals thatthey have written and wish to share. Include yourlegal name, the name to attribute the work to, andcomplete references for any material by other peoplewhich you included or adapted into the ritual, plusyour written permission to distribute this for researchpurposes. These will be available on a cost-recoverybasis (cost of photocopies and postage) to aid ourmembers in research. Rituals that are plagiarized willnot be accepted.

Marriages:

Two of our clergy, Teri Chartier and Samuel Wagar,are licensed to perform legal marriages in BC. Wehave some requirements that have to be met for us toagree to marry you. We will not charge a fee forperforming a marriage but all expenses involved forthe clergy will be paid by the couple and donationswill be accepted. CWA enthusiastically supports equalmarriage rights for heterosexuals and homosexualsand everyone in between.

Early Notices

The next Annual General Meeting of CWA-BC will bein Nanaimo, on August 13th 2006.The Nanaimo CWA congregation will be producingthe Second Isle of the Blessed festival in June 2006.Details are just beginning to emerge so stay tuned.The Gathering for Life on Earth, British Columbia’spremiere Pagan festival, will be on the August longweekend (August 4-7th). Registration will open for