oooooh jeez
have you ever performed one before?
I have some links to a few different rits. If you'd like, I could find them and post them
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| Celtic Radio Community > The Grove > ::panic:: |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 29-Oct-2004, 01:02 AM |
| So I've been asked to officiate at a handfasting... ...in 36 hours... They asked me two hours ago. ::runs screaming through the house ripping out notebooks:: |
| Posted by: urian 29-Oct-2004, 01:04 AM |
| oooooh jeez have you ever performed one before? I have some links to a few different rits. If you'd like, I could find them and post them |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 29-Oct-2004, 01:27 AM |
| I've done...::counts:: Five? Six? But it's been years. And um...not one of them are currently married. Not a good track record...heh. Post 'em. This one has complications out the wazoo and I'm gonna have to pick and choose till I get a whole rit that'll work. Thankee, darlin'! |
| Posted by: VetteGal 29-Oct-2004, 01:30 AM |
| Sekmet, What type of handfasting is this? The year and a day or the lifetime? I do have both rituals if you are interested. Let me know with one or both you want. |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 29-Oct-2004, 01:37 AM |
| This is a renewal of vows since their reception and such last year got messed up first with the family hissy fits, then the bride got sick. They've got the legal marriage, so I'm going to assume lifetime. ...and that's just the tip of the iceberg...I'll take whatever anyone can throw at me.  |
| Posted by: urian 29-Oct-2004, 01:41 AM |
| here's one link with several ceremonies. I have others but its late and I am off to bed..then more packing in the morn hope this helps a bit..I will ook for the other slater night http://www.handfasting.info/h_rituals.html |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 29-Oct-2004, 01:44 AM |
| Woot...danke, Urian. You're still a sweetie. Go bed...one of us ought to get some sleep. |
| Posted by: urian 29-Oct-2004, 01:45 AM |
 *wanders of much like a zombie* BRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNSSSSS er PIIIIIIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWS |
| Posted by: VetteGal 29-Oct-2004, 01:52 AM |
| Sekmet, Looks like you have a few to check out. Do you still want me to post mine or are you ok? Let me know. |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 29-Oct-2004, 01:55 AM |
| Post them, please! If nothing else I'm going to be meeting with them in the afternoon over lunch to hammer out details. I'd like to give them as many choices as I can manage. Thank you thank you thank you! |
| Posted by: VetteGal 29-Oct-2004, 02:50 AM |
| I will list the Forever one first since you said that is the one you would use. This is from the book Celebrating Times of Change by Stanley J. A. Modrzyk. Arrange the altar in your usual manner. In addition it is bedecked with flowers, as is the perimeter of the Circle. On the pentacle on the altar lie the rings of the Lord and Lady. Draped across the pentacle is a white sash for the binding. To the west of the pentacle is a large chalice. To the north of the pentacle is a small dish of herbs. The herbs are selected by the bride and groom for what they would bring into the union through their mystical properties. Groom brings what would be considered the masculine or God aspects and the bride brings herbs that would be for the feminine or Goddess aspects. The bell is rung to gather the people to form the circle. There is only one circle. Friends and relatives who are not of the Wiccan religion stand side by side with those who practice Wicca to form a single circle of love and trust. Gateways are left in the East and west for the bride and groom to enter through. At the circles edge in the south would be the musicians. The groom stands just beyond the Circle in the East with his attendant. The bride stands just beyond the circle in the West with her attendant. The Circle for this ritual is cast by having everyone join hands one by one beginning in the East and following clockwise around, leaving a space in the west and a space in the east. They are asked to channel love to their neighbor as they join hands so that the Circle might be cast as a ring of love that will surround the couple. Once the Circle has been cast, the Mighty Forces, The God, and the Goddess are invoked. (the ritual I have here is if you have both a priest and priestess, I will still write priest and priestess, but if you are doing this alone just say everything) PRIEST: May the place of this rite be consecrated before the Gods, for we gather here in a ceremony of love for two who would become one. PRIESTESS: May Lady (name) and Lord (name) be brought forth to stand before us and before the Gods of Nature. The musicians begin to play as te attendants bring the couple into the Circle to stand together, side by side, facing the altar to the east. PRIESTESS: Be one with this couple here, O Beings of Air! Intertwine completely the thoughts of love that they have for each other. Grant in mind, henceforth, that they shall complement one another and be as one! PRIEST: Be one with this couple here, O Beings of Fire! Kindle the feelings of love that they have for each other until they flame with an all-consuming passion that will burn endlessly through the Aeons! PRIESTESS: Be one with this couple here, O Beings of Water! Fill their spirits' deep wells of feeling until they overflow and run together so that even when they are apart they will sense each other's soul and touch! PRIEST: Be one with this couple here, O Beings of Earth! Steadfast and firm shall ye form this bond upon which they build so that as long as this couple desires to be together, no force from within or without shall prevail against their love! PRIESTESS: Blessed Goddess and Shining God, give to this couple before us Your love and Your protection! Blessed Be! ALL: Blessed Be! PRIEST: Do you Lady (name), and you Lord (name) truly meet in perfect love and perfect trust? LORD & LADY: (together) We Do! PRIESTESS: Then show your love and trust for each other at this time. Lady and Lord open their auras, embrace, and kiss. PRIEST: So mote it be! ALL: So mote it be! I will finish later as I need to get to sleep. |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 29-Oct-2004, 11:09 AM |
| Woot...this helps. Thankee, Vette! ...now if could just get them to call back so I know when the hell to .come out tonight... |
| Posted by: VetteGal 29-Oct-2004, 11:22 AM |
| Continuing where I left off, The Priest takes the sash from across the pentacle then lifts the pentacle with the rings and holds it before the Lady who picks it the ring for her Lord. She consecrates the ring with the four elements channeling her personal energy into it as well. When she is finished the Lord does the same with his ring for the Lady. The Priest places the pentacle back on the altar and picks up the sash. He asks the Lord and Lady to face each other and extend their left hands. The Priest binds their left hand together with the white sash. As the Priest does the binding, the Priestess says: Above you are the stars in the heavens. Beneath you rests the solid ground. As time passes, remember: Like the stars, your love for each other should be ever bright with the twinkle of happiness ever sparkling in your eyes. Like the heavens, your love for each other should be vast unto infinity. Like the solid ground, your love for each other should be firm and enduring throughout the ages as shown by your embraces given daily. Possess one another, but be understanding of the meaning of freedom. Have patience with each other, for storms and problems will come, but they will pass ever so quickly if you stand in the shelter of each other's arms with love. Be free in the giving of attention and warmth. A gentle word and a soft touch cost so little, yet they are some of the most priceless treasures of love. Make love often and be sensuous with one another. Fear not to give pleasure, nor to show the awareness of pleasure received. Fear not the ways and words of others around you. In your love for each other the God and Goddess are with you, now and forever! The Lady places the ring on the Lord's finger and gives her vows. The Lord places the ring on the Lady's finger and gives his vows. The Priestess picks up the chalice and hands it to the couple who hold it in their left hands (still bound). Ths Priest picks up the dish of herbs and holds it before the couple. LADY: Into this union I come to share with you the blessings of the God and the Goddess. [As she is speaking she takes a pinch of herbs and drops it into the chalice of wine.] LORD: Into this union I come to share with you protection and comfort. [As he is speaking he takes a pinch of herbs and drops it into the chalice of wine.] LADY: Into this union I come to share with you harmony. [More herbs.] LORD: Into this unoin I come to share with you prosperity. [More herbs.] LADY: Into this union I come to share with you dreams together. [More herbs.] LORD; Into this union I come to share with you health and long life together. [More herbs.] LADY [Takes the chalice from the Priestess.]: To seal this union of love I offer you this Cup of Cerridwen, this Holy Grail of Love's Immortality, to share with me, to signify the life we shall share together. LORD [Takes the cup and drinks deeply.]: And back to thee do I offer to share this Cup of Cerridwen, and my life, forever. [He offers the cup to the Lady who drinks deeply from it and then (#) holds it before her.] LADY: By this chalice before the Goddess and the God do I pledge my maidenhood to thee and to thee alone! LORD [Takes his athame and holds it above the chalice and says]: By this athame before the God and the Goddess do I pledge my manhood to thee and to thee alone! [The Lord would then plunge his athame into the chalice and hold it there as together they say] TOGETHER: One with another, forever! [Then (#) the lady would hand the chalice back to the Priestess who places it back on the altar. The Priestess then unties the white binding sash as the Priest says] PRIEST: With a handfasting, love begins to change the daily words of life into songs of praise with music that is composed by night to be sung in the light of the day. Here, now, love's longing draws back the veil and illumines the recesses of the heart, creating a joy and happiness that no one can surpass. A Handfasting is the joining of two Divine Spirits so that a third might be brought forth upon the Earth. It is the total union of two souls striving for completeness. A handfasting fosters that higher unity in which the individuals within these two spirits will be fused. It is the Golden Ring in a chain whose beginning is that first glance and whose ending is eternity itself. It is pure, fresh rain falling from a cloudless sky to fructify and bless the fields of Divine Nature. That first glance from the eyes of the beloved is as a seed sown in the heart. Their first kiss is as a flower upon a branch of the Tree of Life. The union of two lovers, now, is as the first fruit of that first flower of that seed! By the Gods thou art pronounced Lord and Lady unto one another. There is a little more but I have to go for a bit but will finish it up later. |
| Posted by: VetteGal 29-Oct-2004, 11:57 PM |
| OK, here is the rest of it. The Priestess plases the broom, on the ground before the couple. Hand in hand the couple jumps the broom. The Priestess then takes the broom and sweeps the past away and out of the Circle to the north. The Priest and Priestess now present the couple to each of the quarters, and the couple give their thanks at each. The mighty forces are NOT dismissed, as they are welcome to join in the festivites. They will be dismissed later by the Priest and Priestess as the festivities are winding down. PRIEST & PRIESTESS [Together before each of the quaters in turn]: Mighty Forces of the [particular quarter] we bring to you Lord (name) and Lady (name) joined this day in a union of love. LORD & LADY [Together before each of the quarters in turn]: Mighty Forces of the [particular quarter] we thank you for attending our handfasting and for the energies shared. Blessed Be! ALL: Blessed Be! The couple close their auras. PRIESTESS: We are going to open the Circle of love we made earlier when we all joined hands. So, if everyone would please turn around and face the outside of the Circle and push the Circle of love we formed out and away from where you stand. See it grow larger as it moves farther and farther away. Like a ripple on a large pond, see it moving out and away...to the edge of the (place)... to the edge of the city...to the edge of the state...rippling out and away until it meets itself. So that we may truly say, the Circle is open, yet unbroken! So Mote It Be! ALL: So Mote It Be! As the musicians begin to play, the Priest and Priestess ask everyone to fall in line behind the couple to march over to where the refreshments are for a toast to the new couple. OK, that is the end of it. Don't forget to dismiss the Mighty Forces. |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 30-Oct-2004, 02:23 AM |
| You're both saints. And saved my ass. Thank you thankyou thankyou! |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 01-Nov-2004, 01:06 AM |
| I. Am so. Pissed off. Right now. |
| Posted by: VetteGal 01-Nov-2004, 03:10 PM |
| Do we want to know why? |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 01-Nov-2004, 10:13 PM |
| I'll get into more detail later, but here's the gist of it: Couple and family drama combine in this rip-roaring comedy of errors in which the high priestess is set in the middle and made the scapegoat. Honestly, I don't know why I was there. Heh. |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 04-Nov-2004, 12:46 AM |
| Ok, since you guys really deserve a fuller story than that: I called on Friday and we agreed that either lunch or dinner was in order for us to sit down, get to know each other a little, and get this ceremony worked out the way they wanted it to be. They said they'd call when they got home from work and tell me where to meet them and when. No call. So I called Saturday morning, hoping to at least get there a little early, run their choices past them, get the go-ahead on one, and make this look like we had all the time in the world and that I'm really a professional. No answer. And they aren't at the site. No answer to either cell phone. I'm stuck. I don't want to go knocking on their door, because that's...creepy. Besides, I wasn't laying any money on them being home anyway. So I went to a coffee shop to sit down and wait for my cell phone to ring, which it never did. Meanwhile I was memorizing two different ceremonies and writing quick notes down on a couple of alternates. I had them set up so that in all reality, they had to answer the ultimate yes/no question and repeat after me. I did the rest. I finally go back around 4:30. All the relatives are there, no bridal couple. Let me just say right here and now...don't *ever* be the one to announce to two sets of upright Catholic parents that not only are their daughters lesbians and they're getting married, but it's gonna be a Pagan wedding. Just a tip. I got harangued, lectured, insulted, browbeaten, snubbed, condescended to, and outright asked to leave. I was getting ready to do just that when the couple arrived. It's now less than a half an hour till the ceremony was supposed to take place and I have no idea what the hell's going on. I got promised that when they took care of this "one more little thing", they'd both huddle with me and let me know which ceremony to use and I could start getting ready. It's now quarter till six and people are starting to show up. This is going from awkward to painful. They finally dash into the room I'm holed up in, I sit the choices in front of them, they both get that look that says their wedding day is ruined and it's all my fault. One of them smiles without making eye contact and says whatever one I want to use is fine, the other one just said "whatever". That was it. Whatever. The parents refused to get in the circle. Half of the other relatives didn't know what was going on and kept wandering out to get this or that. The DJ started early and I had to scream to make myself heard. But they're married dammit. After the ceremony, I didn't exist anymore. No thanks, no weak attempts at conversation, no "do stay and have something to eat", just...nothing. So I left. ...needless to say, I'm not doing another wedding anytime soon... |
| Posted by: bubba 04-Nov-2004, 08:50 AM |
| Sekhmet, they're really off to a spectacular start. Sounds almost like they were hoping you wouldn't show up so they could back out of the whole thing. |
| Posted by: Sekhmet 04-Nov-2004, 01:39 PM |
| Wanna know the really frightening part? This was their renewal of vows. From what I understand the first wedding got thrown off kilter for whatever reason and this was their do-over. Makes you wonder, doesn't it? |
| Posted by: VetteGal 04-Nov-2004, 01:46 PM |
| Yes, it really does make you wonder if they should be together. |
| Posted by: dragonboy3611 06-Nov-2004, 04:14 PM | ||
That's absolutely horrible what happened to you. |