Merry Meet,

We hope this finds you and yours well.

We are writing because we miss you and want to update you on the state of the Society of Elder Faiths.

Since the founding of the SEF, we have offered in person, public events to celebrate the cycles of Nature and facilitate connections among the greater Pagan community. Attendance and support have waxed and waned over the years, but, since COVID, have remained low.

We now find ourselves at a crossroads. Energetically and monetarily, we cannot proceed without greater participation by the membership. If the SEF and her work is something that you wish to see continue, we need to hear from you. Ideally, we need to see you at upcoming events.

Please be in touch. Let us know what events you would physically attend and bring others of similar mind. Unfortunately, if attendance does not improve and response to this message is tepid, we will close next year.

Best regards,

The Board of the SEF

Whatever your thoughts, please send us a message at:

societyofelderfaithsma@gmail.com

We will be having our annual adult-only Samhain ritual on November 2, 2024 at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Winchendon.

Doors will open at 6, and we should conclude by 9.

Ancient Egyptian Ancestor Ritual

The origins of ancestor worship lie in the ambivalence of the living towards the dead.  Beyond the affection one held for the more recently deceased, one’s forebears could intercede on one’s behalf in this world and the next.  On the other hand, the dead could become malevolent if not placated.  Funeral and offering rites were performed, in part, to maintain good relations with the deceased generations.

The ceremony

The Rite of the Celebration of the Ka we will be performing dates to the early dynasties of ancient Egypt.  Participants will align and strengthen their ties to their ancestors and share in the oldest recorded funereal offering rites.  While unmistakably ancient Egyptian, this ritual has parallels with ancestor rites of other cultures and is useful in developing one’s own practices. A copy of the ritual can be found here.

To pre-register, please complete the form below. You can also pay in advance here or pay at the door.

Shawn is hard at work to bring us an Egyptian – themed ritual and games. For a preview, here is the draft of the ritual.

The schedule should look something like this:

• Open the site at noon.
• The Ritual and games will begin at 1pm.

Please be advised: parking costs are $8 for MA residents/$30 for out of state residents. If you have a state park parking pass, you are all set. These fees will be collected upon entering the parking lot. If you have a handicapped license plate or placard, disabled veteran or Purple Heart Recipient plate, that fee should be waived. Also, please check with your local library as many are part of a program where MA residents can borrow a special DCR Library Pass (please display on dashboard): https://www.mass.gov/service-details/find-where-you-can-borrow-a-parkspass.

Carpooling IS recommended, if you are able, just to be able to cut down parking costs for everyone.

If you would like to renew or start a membership, we can help you with that.

We hope to see you there!

Where:  Grafton Barn (Community Harvest Project), 37 Wheeler Rd, Grafton, MA

Who:  All ages welcome

Ritual: “Need Fire” Practiced until at least the mid-nineteenth century, from the Scottish Highlands to Russia, the Need Fire was considered a panacea in times of trouble and, more specifically, a remedy for disease in humans and livestock.  While details vary greatly, the basic rite consisted of the extinguishing of all fires, the igniting of a new fire by friction, the building of one of two bonfires fed by specific woods, and the passing of participants/animals through the fires’ smoke.

 The Society of Elder Faiths invites you to join us as we build a Need Fire to purify ourselves for the coming seasons. 

Bring:  Your own picnic lunch and beverages (no alcohol)

Each participant will add wood to the fire and are encouraged to bring their own.  (Please note:  The piece of wood should be non-toxic, dry, no thicker than one inch, and no longer than one foot.  Contact us if you have questions.  We will be bringing extra wood.)

Pre-register now!

We will be hosting our Annual Meeting in person once again at the Unitarian Church of Hudson and Marlborough in Union Hall downstairs. Members will have the opportunity to renew their membership on-site, if they wish. Renewal information is also available here.

The doors will open at 4:30 pm, and we will begin the meeting at 5:00. Also new this year, we will have a Craft Corner for the kids beginning at 4:30 until the end of the Annual Meeting, so parents, please feel free to bring your kids. The craft will be Imbolc-related.

At 6 pm, get ready for another edition of Conjure Cinema! We will have movie-style concessions for a small price.

Throughout the evening, we will be having a silent auction on many fantastic spiritual and ritual items as our fundraiser.

Please sign-up below so we know you are planning to attend.

Join us for a La Befana ritual at the Barn in Grafton, MA beginning at 1PM. This enchanting event is suitable for people of all ages. Families especially are encouraged to attend.

To register for this event, please fill out this form below. You will be asked to complete a waiver when you arrive.

If you’d like to pay in advance, you can do so here.

Time: 6pm 

Where: Unitarian Church of Marlborough and Hudson, MA, 80 Main St, Hudson, MA 01749

Admission: $5 per person

What: Auction, games, food, fun!

Tickets will also be on sale for snacks, desserts and drinks.

To help make this event a success, we have some needs to fill. Please keep reading for info.

Family Feud Survey and Teams

One of the games we’d like to play is Family Feud! If you and your covenmates want to make a team to play the night of, let us know. If you want to complete a survey to help us in advance, click here.

A Samhain Ritual, of particular interest to gardeners, will be performed on Saturday, October 21st, 6:00 PM, at the First Universalist Society in Franklin, MA. Based on the ancient Egyptian festival Ka Her Ka (Coptic Khoiak), participants will construct and consecrate ‘corn mummies’ to be buried in their gardens in anticipation of the return of the Osiris, in the spring. Performed at the cult centers of this God throughout Egypt, this ceremony was a very physical celebration and promise of the immortality of the soul and the renewed life of the land.  

A draft of the ritual has been made available here if you would like to get an idea of what will be happening.

To register for this event, please fill out this form below. You will be asked to complete a waiver when you arrive.

If you’d like to pay in advance, you can do so here.

Join us for an afternoon of apple picking and fun at Tougas Farm in Northborough, MA on Sunday 17 September at 1 pm.

Let us know if you’re going to make it by emailing us or messaging us on Facebook. We’ll have a small sign that says SEF so you can find us once there.

This is a social event! Get some cider and donuts and then we can head out into the orchard. See the Tougas Farm website for details on Apple picking.

We hope to see you there! It’s fun for the whole family.