by Sean McCabe, Leslie McQuade, and David Griffin
I. Commemorating the Passing of Alex Sanders
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by HP Sean P. McCabe
I. Commemorating the Passing of Alex Sanders
Progenitor - Hibernian Line of Alexandrian Wicca
Imperator for England, Ireland, Scottland, and Wales -
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn®
(EU OHIM reg. 000063925)
Baphomet Presides Over Alexandrian Wiccan Rite
led by Alex Sanders and based on cross gender sexual polarity
This week we celebrate the Festival of Bealtaine traditionally the end of winter and the beginning of summer in the Celtic wheel of the year. We also mark the anniversary of the passing of Alex Sanders and celebrate his life and the Alexandrian tradition of Wicca which he so kindly made available to everyone. He was born Orrell Alexander Carter on 6th June, 1926 and his Craft name was Verbius.
Alex Sanders was not shy of the media and there are umteen photos of him and Maxine in the public domain - but I think his hallmark ritual photo is that of Baphomet - the Horned God.
The Bel-fire is the name of the Celtic god Bel or Balor and can be traced back to the Middle Eastern Baal. The Gaulish-Celtic equivalent Horned God is Cernunnos who mates with the Great Mother not unlike the Celtic Pan. The figure of the Horned God, Baphomet became enshrined in the cultural psyche and is recorded in many medieval paintings and woodcuts, some bearing the motto: Solve et Coagula, to dissolve and congeal; to separate and join together.
At the International Grand Sabbat of Alexandrian Wicca held at MagickAll 2015 in Pahrump, Nevada we joined together, earlier this month, not only as Barefoot Coven, Hyperborea Coven and Coven Hibernia but also to celebrate the life of Alex Sanders. What better way to celebrate and honour Alex' life than by his favourite and traditional iconic image of Baphomet presiding over the Grand Sabbat!
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Afterwards during the festivities the Wicker Man burned upon the saucer valley ground which rests over a primodial reservoir of water and as the flames danced into the night sky, Nuit smiled upon us from the starry heavens - the Star Goddess!
I wish you and yours a very Happy and enjoyable Bealtaine and your Bel-fire burns bright!
Blessed be,
Sean. P. McCabe
(Sean McCabe was initiated into Alexandrian Wicca by Janet Farrar - thus his lineage is as close to Alex Sanders as any man can be).
(Sean McCabe was initiated into Alexandrian Wicca by Janet Farrar - thus his lineage is as close to Alex Sanders as any man can be).
II. The True Meaning of Beltane
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by HPS Leslie McQuade
High Priestess of Barefoot Coven
Hibernian Line of Alexandrian Wicca
Hibernian Line of Alexandrian Wicca
International Cancellaria -Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn®
(EU OHIM reg. 000063925)
Beltane is about sex. In the old days, you would go to the ritual bonfire, become God or Goddess, and when your eyes locked with that particular someone, it was off to the privacy of the wilderness to have divinely inspired, ecstatic sex.
Witches know that the Star Goddess says “…Behold ~ ALL acts of love and pleasure are my rituals”. The Great Mother says “and as a sign that ye be truly free, ye shall be naked in your rites…and ye shall dance & sing, feast, make music and make love …all in my praise. For mine is … joy on earth”.
Our society, for being so hyper-sexualized, is a culture starving for Authentic Sexuality. Beltane is the time of year the clean, pure joy of human sexuality can be explored in the way the Goddess intended. Sex is most certainly NOT only for procreation. Sex is good for your soul. Look at nature. There is no sadomasochism in Nature. Authentic Sex is deep, passionate. It gushes out of you like spring melt-water pushing boulders down the mountainside, laughing at the trees as it tumbles by. Authentic Sex leaves you feeling rejuvenated and alive, as if your very soul has been scrubbed clean. People can see the change on you. They say “you glow” or “you’re just beaming today”. That’s Authentic Sex.
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So I’ll say it again. Beltane is about sex. It’s a Pagan Holyday celebrating sexual mysteries ~ mysteries of the very Fires of Creation.
Happy Beltane!
II. "Walpurgis Night"
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by HP David Griffin of Barefoot Coven
Hibernian Line of Alexandrian Wicca
International Imperator - Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn®
(EU OHIM reg. 000063925)
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Baphomet Presides Over A Walpurgis Night Celebration
Tonight Europe celebrates "Walpurgis Night." Walpurgis Night is the English translation of Walpurgisnacht, one of the German names for the night of 30 April, so called because it is the eve of the feast day of Saint Walpurga, an 8th-century abbess in Germany. It is actually Beltane's eve, a remnant of the Pagan past of Germany. In German folklore Walpurgisnacht, also called Hexennacht (literally "Witches' Night"), is believed to be the night of a witches' meeting on the Brocken, the highest peak in the Harz Mountains, a range of wooded hills in central Germany between the rivers Weser and Elbe.
In Sweden, today is a day when children dress up as witches and tonight, as a remnant of Scandinavia's Pagan past, all across the country people will gather to light the bonfires of "Valborgsmäsafton," popularly considered a rite celebrating the coming of Spring and the passing of Winter's darkness. According to Swedish folklore, tonight witches fly on their broomsticks to "Blåkulla" to celebrate the Sabbat.
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It is quite fitting as HP McCabe writes above, that today Alexandrian Witches of the original Hibernian line celebrate the life and passing of Alex Sanders. For me, tonight is also a time when I remember my Swedish Son, Adam Kadmon, who passed away in a tragic car accident last July. Tonight I shall remember with mixed pleasure and sadness all the times Adam and I stood together, enjoying the beauty and warmth of Walpurgis Night bonfire.
Tonight, Adam, you shall be sorely missed. May the Goddess tonight bless both you and Alex Sanders as those who love you honor you.
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A Walpurgis Night Bonfire in Sweden
It is quite fitting as HP McCabe writes above, that today Alexandrian Witches of the original Hibernian line celebrate the life and passing of Alex Sanders. For me, tonight is also a time when I remember my Swedish Son, Adam Kadmon, who passed away in a tragic car accident last July. Tonight I shall remember with mixed pleasure and sadness all the times Adam and I stood together, enjoying the beauty and warmth of Walpurgis Night bonfire.
Tonight, Adam, you shall be sorely missed. May the Goddess tonight bless both you and Alex Sanders as those who love you honor you.
Adam Kadmon Griffin (1992-2014)