See you all January 9th!!!!!

Are you interested in contributing to the USU Pagan Alliance blog this upcoming semester? We would love to have you.

If you aren’t sure what to write about, one idea is to script a quick “I’m a pagan/wiccan/pantheist/asatru/neopagan/witch/naturalist/and more because…” post! This is a very personal way to break into the pagan blogging business and it might inspire you on other topics you’d like to write about and contribute to the blog!

Feel free to post in the comments or over on our Facebook group page to get more information.

***This is a closed event for paid USUPA members only!*** You may pay your dues online before. Please clear additional guests with an officer. Why is it closed? We do this for the safety of our members. This all night ritual is a very personal and powerful magick to be worked with people we all know and trust. If you would like to dicuss this further please contact one of our officers.

Yule will be an all-night Vigil from 10 pm -7 am

Yule Ritual and Menu

• USUPA- Main Dish/Soup
• Isaac- Cheese ball/crackers/veg
• Kassie- Potatoes
• Destiny-Rolls (4 dozen)
• Anthony- Cake
• Alicia- Kale soup
• Bethany and kate- Salad and peas
• Dano- chips and dip
• Megan- Cider

Address is on the FB page or in the group email
Take the driveway between the small module home and the big white house on the right hand side of the road. Kassie will mark it with balloons. Please park neatly in the back and go thru the gate on the north side of the lot.
If there is not room to park in the back then please park in the circle of the street being careful not to block any driveways.

Call Kassie if you get confused. 435-512-8867 or need a ride!
We will have a feast and stay up all night doing crafts, telling stories or watching a movie. The ritual will last all night and we will great the sun.

This is our last tea of the semester. Most of you have already gone home but those of you that are still in Logan town please join us for a Crepe and a cuppa.

11 am to 12:30 pm at Cirtus and Sage Coffee Shop (130 N 100 E)

We might make it more formal and decide on books you want to read for next semester or talk about needed activities so come put your two cents in.

These articles are being written for a queer student newsletter — but that has yet to go out and I figured I could share my articles with our great pagan group as well!A short introduction on what “History with Isaac” is like — I like to break it down into layman’s terms that non-historical people can understand today. Sometimes my layman’s terms are not as easy as I think.

There are many pitfalls to a historical discussion, and we should tread carefully to avoid imposing our own ideas onto the past. Think about how many different perspectives there are today; there are even more perspectives throughout history that we need to consider.

History has a lot to teach us about who we are and have always been.

This series will discuss and explore Gender Variance in History, mostly Mythology at first.

Defining Gender Variance through history is hard. The modern definition is used by psychology mainly, but you will see it pop up in anthropology, history, women and gender studies, etc. Gender variance can simply be defined as an expression or label of one’s gender that does not “fit” within the gender roles assigned or traditionally understood by a particular society’s culture.

Looking particularly at mythology throughout history, many of these stories are representations of figures understood to be greater than man. They were stories of gods, demi-divinities, or heroes whose very biological nature was better than that of regular humans. In this way, these stories were not meant to be read as ways in which ‘everyday’ people were expected to behave. They are not, essentially, representations of real life. They are flamboyant and interesting.

Sacred stories being a model for humanity to behave is a much more modern idea [cf. Christianity], but there were distinct lines drawn for gods and humans and the appropriate behavior for each group.

This article will focus on a lesser known deity from Classical [Mediterranean] mythology: Agdistis. A more common name that might strike a note is Cybele. This deity is a mother-goddess figure that was imported to Ancient Greece from Phrygia or Anatolia [Modern Turkey]. Some stories mark this god or goddess’s birth as the result of Zeus having a wet dream or a good time with himself and from that exercise: a figure with both male and female organs springing up from the earth of Mount Dindymus. This figure was very powerful [Phrygians considered this combination of organs positively], and the other gods became fearful. And so the male genitals were cut from Agdistis’ body, leaving her as a goddess.

From his testicles an almond tree grew, and when a river god’s daughter Nana picked the fruit she became pregnant with the most beautiful, talented, and skilled youth — Attis. Coveted by many including the unaware Agdistis, Attis had his wedding crashed by none other than his jealous father[?], who cursed the wedding party with madness. Attis castrated himself and bled to death as a result. Agdistis/Cybele felt bad for the death, and Attis was brought back into eternal sleep by Zeus: alive, but not.

Priests of Agdistis/Cybele were known to have castrated themselves in honor of Attis, and celebrated the regenerative power of nature or vegetation in their world. Some dressed in traditional women’s attire, and engaged in ecstatic or wild dances and rituals to honor their goddess. Despite being imported from the often misunderstood near Eastern world, many temples and altars were dedicated to Agdistis/Cybele in Greece itself. Worship of this almost universal mother figure continued even as a mystery cult into Roman culture. This means that she was a very popular goddess, actively worshiped, for over a thousand years.

It is interesting to think about why this deity was so popular for so long. Do you think ancient cultures had a stigma for hermaphrodites, sex change, cross dressing, or any other form of gender variance that we recognize in our culture today?

Contact me through isaac dot furniss at the gmail dot com for any sources, further references or more details.

Thanks for reading!

Megan will be hosting Decembers Full Moon !

• • When

    Saturday, 10 December 2011
  • Time

    20:00 until 23:00

• Where

  Megan’s Place, check FB for addy

• Description

  The Long Nights full moon focuses on getting through the darkness in order to see the light again. We may revel in the freedom from adversity or the knowledge that it will soon pass. Come with the intention of rebirth and reconciliation; this is is a time to open your heart to friends and family that may need your warmth.Please park in the uncovered stalls. The townhouse is at the northeast end of the compound and has a blue door with a gold-silvery wreath. If lost, call Megan at 801-643-3052.