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The Sabbat Missive for Yule has a few great gift ideas for Yule 2007 as well as some of the history behind the Sabbat of Yule.

What do you get the Witch that has everything? Take a look and see if there is anything that your special priest or priestess would love to have for this Yule Ritual.

Yule Gift Ideas!

We recently had a new customer register with us and make a purchase online. This person, we found out was 12 years old. Maybe our youngest ever customer too. The mother of this child called to arrange payment and delivery of this purchase which I took to mean that all was okay. Payment was made and items delivered.

Latter on that day I received an email from our young customer letting me know that mom wanted her account deleted from our system because she was not comfortable with the exchange of information on the account that we held for her child. No problem, it was deleted.

This got me thinking, is it our responsibility to ensure that the person buying from us is age appropriate? How do we know how old the person is sending us their order? Of course you have to be a certain age to have a credit card, but payments can be made by certified cheque or money order. I’m not sure that PayPal even checks to see how old their account holders are. As long as they have a linked bank account…

So as of today we have a line of text at the top or the account creation page that states:
NOTE: You must be 18 years of age to make a purchase on our store. By creating an account you are acknowledging that you are of legal age.

I hope this is satisfactory and if anyone has any advice to offer it would be welcome. I don’t want parents to think we’re trying to corrupt their children or drag them into some “cult”.

The main purpose of Magickal ritual is to cause changes in consciousness. Magickal power comes from the person (or people), not from the superficial decorations of ritual.

The tools and symbols used in ritual, the pentagram, water, salt, incense, wand or athame have no Magickal power of their own, but are used in ritual to aid us in focusing our attention to help bring about the shift in consciousness that is needed. The shift in consciousness bring the tools and symbols to life, by directing that power from within through the tools. The power is drawn up into the person holding the athame or wand and directed out through the athame or wand.

The key to magickal ritual is the shifting of consciousness, and without that shift it is merely drama, void of any magickal energy. There are many ways to achieve this shift such as dance, drumming, fasting and other forms of deprivation, sex, meditation and ritual.

The word “Ritual” implies that it is a set pattern, or way of doing things. The repetitive nature of ritual is necessary to bring about this shift in consciousness. Why then do so many of us try to change up our rituals, make them different or better than the last one? If you succeeded in making that shift in consciousness then you need not change a thing. Here is a list of definitions of the word ritual and you’ll see that this is so.

1. an established or prescribed procedure for a religious or other rite.
2. a system or collection of religious or other rites.
3. observance of set forms in public worship.
4. a book of rites or ceremonies.
5. a book containing the offices to be used by priests in administering the sacraments and for visitation of the sick, burial of the dead, etc.
6. a prescribed or established rite, ceremony, proceeding, or service: the ritual of the dead.
7. prescribed, established, or ceremonial acts or features collectively, as in religious services.
8. any practice or pattern of behavior regularly performed in a set manner.
9. a prescribed code of behavior regulating social conduct, as that exemplified by the raising of one’s hat or the shaking of hands in greeting.

Secondly, and no less important, Magickal Ritual is to worship the Gods and Goddesses and celebrate the seasonal changes. This is done in Magickal Rituals known as Esbats and Sabbats.

Millions of hard earned dollars are given to churches all over the world each year. People spend their lives preaching and teaching the ways of their God(s). Wars for centuries on every continent have been fought and millions have died in the name of Gods. We as a people wear jewellery depicting our beliefs in Gods. We pray to God(s) daily, we give thanks, ask forgiveness, and build churches and temples in their honour. It would seem irrational, illogical, and absurd even for all this to transpire if Gods do not exist.

The Gods, Goddesses, ancient spirits, angels etc. exist. Much like other concepts that human consciousnesses have created, like money, economy, good and bad, because we created them, they do indeed exist and have taken on a life of their own. Therefore, we call upon them in ritual to aid us in our intent.

Among Wiccans there are varied beliefs about what happens after our time on Earth has come to
an end.

Some believe in reincarnation in a variety of types, from being reborn as a tree, or insect to being
reborn in another human form after a time in a higher plane of existence, returning to Earth to
learn more of life’s lessons. Some believe in destiny, others that we have choice. Many believe
that we choose who we are and what lessons we will be here to learn.

The Summerlands is another world that some believe we go to after death, through a portal into
another dimension of existence. Wikipedia describes the Summerlands as often envisaged as a
wide (possibly eternal) field of rolling green hills and lush grass. It is a place for recollection and
reunion with deceased loved ones. In the Summerland, we are privy to the lessons we have
learned in our past lives, and we can see the mistakes and growths made in the life just gone.

Norse mythology has Valhalla, headed by the god Odin, where the residents play rough. Its Hall
of the Slain has warriors fighting and killing each other during the day. Happily, all are brought
back whole each and every evening so they may fight and die again tomorrow.

What do you believe?