MoonFire Calendar
Updated: June 10, 2008
For more information about any of these events, feel free to contact either the person listed below, or any of the people listed on the Contacts page.
We have ritual every 3rd Sunday of the month at the Church. Rain or shine. (Predictability vs. following the lunar calendar: its a trade-off we accommodate by having a 3rd Sunday ritual and then celebrating the cross-quarter Sabbats).
All 3rd Sunday rituals are followed by a potluck, as are most of our other activities. UUCA is a peanut free zone, please do not bring any peanut products into the building. Also, please bring reusable plates and utensils if you can. They save on paper, plastic, and the earth!
MoonFire welcomes everyone. If you are wondering whether to bring children, are new to Paganism, or plan to take pictures or write about our ritual, check the listing and our new statement on attendance.
For a listing of other rituals and happenings, click here.
Our Working Circle is an opportunity to do the work, and learn more from fellow Pagans. For more information see our Working Circle page here. Working circle events are listed below.
Our Paganism 101 course is DONE (for now) for more information go here.
April is Earth Month at UUCA, for more information go here.
2008
June
June 15
Summer Solstice Ritual. Join MoonFire for a celebration in honor of Grandfather Sun as we approach the longest day of the year. We will meditate on the Sun as the source of life and what Summer means to each one of us, and then make a token offering of thanks to the Sun for all He does for us. 1:00 PM at the Church.
June 18
Working Circle: Full Moon Ritual. During the Full Moon Working Circle Ritual will call upon the Moon Goddess and raise energy for one of three things: peace for political victims, healing for disaster victims, or healing for the environment. We (the ritual leaders and the attendees) will choose which one right before the ritual. After raising the energy, we will release it/direct it toward those in need of the cause chosen. Starting at 7:30 at the UUCA Church.
June 20-22
MoonFire Family Campout. We will be doing our usual bi-annual campout for Litha. Come, camp, relax, and participate in some moving rituals. Our current workshop ideas are Yoga, Moon Salutation Style - Dream Catchers - Drumming - and Fire Scrying. For campout information go here. For information on camping go here.
July
July 10
Steering Committee Meeting. Our group has stringent requirements for leadership. You. Must. Show up! Come, show up and find out what its like to lead rituals, steer a Pagan group, and participate in an open, democratic Pagan experience. (And eat candy.) At the Church, 7:30PM.
July 13 - THIS DATE IS TENTATIVE
Working Circle. Circle dancing, we are trying to get a special teacher to conduct a singing, dancing, and drumming class. We may do this outside. Stay tuned.
July 20
Druid Midsummer Ritual. For Midsummer we will be holding an outdoor ritual in Ar nDraiocht Fein
(ADF) Style. ADF is an international fellowship devoted to creating a public tradition of Neopagan Druidry. For more information on ADF please refer to their website.
The ritual purpose will be about celebrating summer and forgetting your cares if only for a little while. The ritual will feature a Greek Pantheon with Dionysus as the main patron, honoring Hermes, Gaia, and calling upon the muses for inspiration. ADF rituals always honor the nature spirits, ancestors and shining ones (other deities). participants are encouraged to bring offerings for any or all of the above. Offerings may include incense, flowers, poetry to be read, stories to be told, or songs to be sung.
Chanting and dancing will encompass the main part of the ritual so, drums, rattles, tambourines or other musical instruments are welcome. Potluck will follow the ritual, something to share during fellowship will be a nice addition. At the Church, 1:00 PM.
August
August 7
Steering Committee Meeting. Our group has stringent requirements for leadership. You. Must. Show up! Come, show up and find out what its like to lead rituals, steer a Pagan group, and participate in an open, democratic Pagan experience. (And eat candy.) At the Church, 7:30PM.
August 8
Summer RE. Barbara and Ed will be leading the summer RE class today. Volunteers are welcome to come and help. 10:00 AM at the Church.
August 13
Working circle. We may do a Labyrinth working.
Special Lughnassa Ritual. Open.
August 17
Lughnassa Ritual. We will celebrate the Ancient Egyptian New Year. The Egyptians believed that the New Year began with the start of the inundation of the Nile River flooding the Nile Valley. Why start with a flood? Well, the Ancient Egyptians were dependent upon the flooding of the Nile for their agriculture. If there was not enough of a flood, then there was famine and drought. If there was too much of a flood, then homes and crops were destroyed. If the Nile flooded to the "correct" amount, then the year was seen as good and favorable by the gods. That's the reason why the inundation of the Nile is seen as the start of the New Year.
The Egyptians knew that the rise of dog star Sirius, which was sacred to Isis; and rising of Orion, which was sacred to Osiris, just before dawn in the summer heralded the annual Nile flood. The flooding of the Nile represented Isis tears that she wept over finding Osiris' dead body. Osiris was seen as the God of vegetation and agricultural fertility, as well as the ruler of the underworld. Join us as we call on the Gods and Goddesses of the Egyptians, and celebrate in the ancient tradition. 1:00PM at the Church.
September
September 4
Steering Committee Meeting. Our group has stringent requirements for leadership. You. Must. Show up! Come, show up and find out what its like to lead rituals, steer a Pagan group, and participate in an open, democratic Pagan experience. (And eat candy.) At the Church, 7:30PM.
September 12-14
MoonFire Family Campout. We will be doing our usual bi-annual campout for Mabon. Come, camp, relax, and participate in some moving rituals.
September 21
Mithraic Ritual. Patrick will lead us in a Mithraic ritual for Mabon! 1:00 PM at the Church.
October
October 2
Steering Committee Meeting. Our group has stringent requirements for leadership. You. Must. Show up! Come, show up and find out what its like to lead rituals, steer a Pagan group, and participate in an open, democratic Pagan experience. (And eat candy.) At the Church, 7:30PM.
October 19
Officer Installation Ritual. Each year we renew the community of MoonFire with a ritual to bless our leadership, give thanks for our worship, and reflect on the connections that bind us. 1:00 PM at the Church.
October 25
Samhain Ritual. Samhain is always our biggest ritual of the year, come celebrate the dark times with us as we honor the ancestors!
November
November 6
Steering Committee Meeting. Our group has stringent requirements for leadership. You. Must. Show up! Come, show up and find out what its like to lead rituals, steer a Pagan group, and participate in an open, democratic Pagan experience. (And eat candy.) At the Church, 7:30PM.
November 16
Native American Ritual. For our Thanksgiving ritual we traditionally honor the Native Americans with a ritual and a donation to a select charity. 1:00PM at the Church.
December
December 4
Steering Committee Meeting. Our group has stringent requirements for leadership. You. Must. Show up! Come, show up and find out what its like to lead rituals, steer a Pagan group, and participate in an open, democratic Pagan experience. (And eat candy.) At the Church, 7:30PM.
December 21
Yule Ritual. Come see what Melissa K. whips up for Yule! 1:00PM at the Church.
Northern Virginia Pagan Network
A very good resource for other events is the Northern Virginia Pagan Network Yahoo calendar. We will not necessarily repeat events listed there here unless we find something really special about them. To go to the Northern Virginia Pagan Network site and calendar click here:
http://www.novapagannetwork.org/CommunityEvents.htm
A meeting for NoVA Practical Tarot Meetup Group!
Topic: Not Your Mama's Celtic Cross!
When: Sunday, July 6, 2:00 PM, at Panera Bread in Fairfax
Meeting fee: USD1.00 per person
Who should come: Everyone! Whether you read only for yourself, for friends, or professionally, this is the Meetup for you!
Why: Cause we love Tarot, just like you!
Meeting Description: Our next meeting will feature review of the Motherpeace Tarot. This deck by Karen Vogel and Vicki Noble is, according to Aeclectic Tarot, "an unusual deck with definite feminist leanings, but unlike many feminist decks it does show a few males. This was the first of the round Tarot decks." We'll also get a detailed look at the classic Celtic Cross spread.
Bring your decks - we're clearly a group that loves to pass around our favorite cards!
Learn more here: NoVA Practical Tarot Meetup Group here and at enchanted planet.
