Beltaine 2003 Order of Service

Welcome to Our Celebration!

Before we begin...

Enjoy the antics of the Fool and other entertainments, greet each other, and check out the Raffle items before the Briefing. Words to the songs we will be singing are on the back of this sheet.

Preparing ourselves for our time with the Gods and Spirits

• Processional and purification - Come Through the Arbor
• Bardic Invocation for our eloquence and inspiration
• Welcoming the Allies, the spirits of the people and their gods who lived in this land before us
• Honoring our Mother Ana
• Unity chant - Single Threads
• Statement of purpose - We celebrate the passion of spring and seek the blessing of fertility.

Declaring Center and opening the Portals

• Tree, Fire, and Well - Portal Song
• Acknowledging the Outsiders - the forces of chaos and change
• Invocation of Manannan mac Lir, our Lord of the Dead, to guide and protect us in the Otherworld

Acknowledging and honoring our guests

• Ancestors - our beloved dead
• Nature Spirits - the spirits of the land and its creatures
• Deities: Lugh, Bríd, Danu, and Bel (feel free to offer a silent welcome to your own gods)
• Archetypes - acknowledging the three societal functions within us
• Deity of the Occasion: Aren, our god of love, freedom, and creative inspiration

Giving and Receiving

• Selecting the King/Queen of the May
• Passing the mini-shaft: Direct your praise and energy to the shaft to build a group offering. While you hold it, you may give praise or thanks to the gods silently or in the form of a vocal or physical offering. Physical offerings may be put in the shaft. When you finish, pass the shaft to the person next to you.
• Group praise - Maypole dance - Round and Round
• Main Sacrifice: giving our offerings to the fire / The May King/Queen jumps the fire
• Omen of return: runes
• Return blessing: chocolate kisses, and all may jump the fire (not at once!)
• Cauldron blessing
• Welcoming new members, officers, and guild members, and bestowing other honors

Unwinding and closing

• Recessional - Now the Rite Is At An End

And afterwards... Join us for a potluck and socializing, and don't forget to get your Raffle Tickets!

Beltaine Songs 2003

Processional:

Come Through the Arbor

(traditional)

Come through the arbor to the Grove
To start the celebration
Young and old we come together
To the Grove to honor the old ones

Unity:

Single Threads

©1996 Marae Price

Single threads entwined in weaving
Are our hearts and minds and souls
As the branches weave the forest
So our joining makes us whole.

Opening the Portals:

Portal Song

© by Ian Corrigan

CHORUS:
By Fire and by Water
Between the Earth and Sky
We stand like the Worldtree
Rooted deep, crowned high.

Come we now to the well....
...The eye and the mouth of Earth
...And silver we bring
...The waters of rebirth
...Together we sing:
CHORUS

We will kindle a fire
...Bless all and with harm to none
...And offerings pour
...A light 'neath the Moon and Sun
...Our spirits will soar.
CHORUS

Gather we at the tree
...The root and the crown of all
...Below and above,
...Together we make our call
...In wisdom and love.
CHORUS

Group Praise:

Round and Round

©1996 Marae Price

Round, round, round we go
Weave a weaving, watch it grow.
Bring us joy today,
Dance the lusty dance of May.

Round and round and round we go,
Make our love grow.
Bring us freedom on this day
To follow our hearts way.

Closing:

And Now the Rite Is At An End

©1996 Paul Kershaw and Marae Price

And now the rite is at an end, again we're parting ways
May truth and honor be your friend and lucky be your days
I'll hold you dearly in my heart, I'll hold you in my mind
And though our branches grow apart, our roots shall be entwined.

Note to Parents: Children are welcome to stay and attend the ritual with you, but only if they are supervised.

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