3224 Navajo Drive
Imbolc Altar and Sharing Circle – The Earth Begins to Stir
Wednesday, February 1st in the UUCC sanctuary.
Sharing Circle from 6 – 6:45.
Drop-in altar visits from 6:45 – 7:30.
Imbolc. What a strange word. Pronounced ‘immolk,’ it means “in the belly” and “in milk” in Old Irish. In times before the abundance found at Publix, when communities were sustained exclusively by what they grew and raised, finding the ewes pregnant in late winter was cause for celebration. It meant that surviving winter was all but assured, and that the life cycle would continue, both for the livestock and the humans who depended on them. It was a sign, nature’s first expression of hope after the dark, deep winter.
Here, we meet Brigid, a Celtic goddess who became a Catholic saint. At Imbolc, Brigid represents the Mother Goddess as Maiden who presides over the liminal space between winter and spring, old and new. She walks the fields and forests, gently coaxing the sleeping world awake, prepares the land to be sown once more, and brings forth tiny buds and crocuses, showing us that the hope of Yule was not misplaced. Goddess of the hearth, temple, and forge, Brigid tends her eternal flame of welcome, devotion, and transformation, inviting us to do the same. At this time of year, we can prepare our own landscape for the work and renewal of spring by clearing out our physical spaces, our mental spaces, and tending our own spiritual flame.
Join us Feb 1 at 6 pm at UUCC for a sharing circle of celebration and ritual. Light refreshments to follow.
If you prefer to skip the circle and just visit the altar, stop by between 6:45 and 7:30 pm.