Artwork by Jos. a. Smith©
Used with the permission of the artist

Next Holiday: Yule
December  21, 2008

Our Christian friends are often quite surprised at how enthusiastically we Pagans celebrate the ‘Christmas’ season. Even though we prefer to use the word “Yule”, and our celebrations may peak a few days before the twenty-fifth, we nonetheless follow many of the traditional customs of the season: decorated trees, caroling, presents, Yule logs, and mistletoe. We might even go so far as putting up a ‘Nativity set’, though for us the three central characters are likely to be interpreted as Mother Nature, Father Time, and the baby Sun God. None of this will come as a surprise to anyone who knows the true history of the holiday, of course.

For the rest of Mike Nichols' article on Yule click here.

Your Own Celebrations of Autumn by Link

It’s starting.  The gradual change into Autumn.  Some say the 13 weeks of Autumn are the most colorful time of the year.  Take a moment and look at some of the special rituals, customs and celebrations you do each Autumn.  Feel the magic of the season.  It might be more colorful than you think!

Technically, Autumn begins on the equinox day in September.  For many of us, the season may begin on a different day that fits the way we live.  “Back-to-School” sales signal
Summer’s end for students.  For sports fans here in the US, Autumn is not official until the World Series or the start of Football as their own private signal that Autumn has finally arrived.  For some, Autumn begins on that first cool night where the windows get closed and the heat comes on.  When does Autumn begin for you?  And when does it end?

Not only does Autumn begin with Back-to-School for students, but for parents as well.  Parents too are shaped by the school activities, social events and other seasonal needs of their children – all which renew themselves each September with the agrarian school calendar (Or as Pagans students might call it, the Wheel of the School Year.)

Read Links' Article by clicking here.

Taylor Ellwood

TWPT's Samhain Articles Page

The Samhain Elemental Ritual by Taylor Ellwood

Traditionally, Samhain is considered to be the day when the dead and living can mingle. The veils of the world are at their thinnest and there is a sense of liminal space in the air. Liminal space is border space, the in between place, where anything can happen.
From Taylor's article called The Samhain Elemental Ritual.
Click here to read the entire article.

Other Samhain Articles new for Samhain 2006

• The Veil Between the Worlds by Marcus Foxglove Griffin
• Samhain: A Time for Introspection--and Activism by Morgan Ravenwood
• Speaking With the Dead at Samhain by Dark Willow
• Hollow Weenie and Other Samhain Nonsense by Sheela Ardrian
  
• I'm Going to Be Myself For Samhain by Lupa