Handfasting-The Pagan Wedding

Humanist weddings performed by non-pastors with all the legal authority are more popular than Christian ones in Scotland.

In 2019, in Scotland, there were 5,879 Humanist weddings, constituting 23% of all marriages. 

There were 5,812 Christian weddings (including the Church of Scotland and the Roman Catholic Church), making up 22% of the overall number.

As people discover who they are, without all the nonsense of religious rigmarole, they enjoy life and each other more.

Regardless of the reason, the trend is clearly moving away from organized religion.

Humanists UK is celebrating the news and calling for England and Wales to join Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, and the Channel Islands in recognizing Humanist weddings.

In England and Wales, over 1,000 couples a year already have a humanist wedding without legal recognition. 

They all must have a separate civil marriage – usually at a registrar’s office – for their marriage to be legally recognized.

Progress is being made and its an example of people discovering who they are and the path they want to take.

Handfasting is either an engagement the wedding ceremony itself, so to be handfasted is equivalent to being married or at least being promised.

In the Middle Ages, Handfasting rituals were used as an engagement ritual.

As time went forward, Paganism began to grow and Pagans wanted marriage rituals that had an authentic significance without being religious. 

So, Handfasting and the jumping of the broom was included in the ceremony.

The ceremony can be conducted by Pagan clergy, someone in your circle, a friend, or by yourselves.

If a legal official who also happens to be Pagan conducts the ceremony, that's all you'll need, it's legal and official. 

But finding such a Pagan legal official can sometimes be difficult to find a clergy member who is also a legal official.

Pagans who want to become legally married will often have the legal paperwork and requirements completed at the local clerk's office or official government office.

If the legality, and paperwork fuss isn't required, anyone you desire can perform the ceremony.

We know giving the bride away is sentimental and traditional, but it comes with a stigma.

A bride isn't property to be given away, no one owns her, she is free to make this decision all by herself, with her free will.

Celtic Wedding Vow by Morgan Llywelyn

"You cannon possess me for I belong to myself

But while we both wish it, I give you that which is mine to give

You cannon command me, for I am a free person

But I shall serve you in those ways you require

and the honeycomb will taste sweeter coming from my hand.

I pledge to you that yours will be the name I cry aloud in the night

and the eyes into which I smile in the morning

I pledge to you the first bite of my meat and the first drink from my cup

I pledge to you my living and my dying, each equally in your care

I shall be a shield for your back and you for mine

I shall not slander you, nor you me

I shall honor you above all others, and when we quarrel we shall do so in private 

and tell no strangers our grievances.

This is my wedding vow to you.

This is the marriage of equals."

So in our Pagan Kitchen world, no one gives the bride away, but that's just us.

Once all that's decided, there's the ceremony itself.

Vows will need to be decided upon, maybe a white dress with a veil, this practice goes back to ancient Pagan Rome, when brides wore brightly colored veils to protect themselves from evil spirits.

Perhaps the sharing of wine by the couple. 

Vows can be anything you want to say.

Here's are a few examples:

I promise to be faithful to you.

I promise to treat you with kindness, respect, appreciation and love.

I promise to participate in our relationship, even during hardships.

I promise to make humor and laughter an integral part of our family.

I promise to love you with all of my heart, honor you with all of my actions, and treasure you. 

I promise to keep you warm when you get cold, and to stand in the way of the sun when it gets hot.

And wherever we go, I promise to be there, holding your hand and telling you, “I love you.”

You’re my best friend.

Let’s get really old together, thank you for marrying me.

Here's a Celtic Wedding Vow

“I pledge my love to you, and everything that I own.

I promise you the first bite of my meat and the first sip from by cup.

I pledge that your name will aways be the name I cry aloud in the dead of night.

I promise to honor you above all others.

Our love is never-ending, and we will remain, forevermore, equals in our marriage.

This is my wedding vow to you.”

Pagans like to stand during weddings, some stand or sit in a circle for Pagan ceremonies.

Sometimes there is the blessing of the area where the ritual is being conducted with the burning of incense, ringing bells, banging drums, casting a circle In order to eliminate any negative energies from wherever they may come.

The elements of Earth, Air, Water, and Fire are usually included, both in words and physically present.

The earth we stand upon for this ritual, the air we breathe, the water can be displayed in any kind of vessel and the flame of candles to represent the element of fire.

These elements are the ingredients of life and creation, how wonderful at a Pagan 

As mentioned earlier, Handfasting is the binding of a couple's hands and or wrists together as a unity ritual within the ceremony. The the couple themselves may tie the knot, maybe it would it the official or by friends or a family member.

The couple decides how long to remain tied in Handfasting, but usually they remain this way during the vows and exchange of the rings.

Handfasting Ceremony Vows

Do you, groom), take (bride)to be your wife, 

to be her constant friend, 

her partner in life, and her true love?

To love her without reservation, 

honor and respect her, 

protect her from harm, 

comfort her in times of distress, 

and to grow with her in mind and spirit?

Do you, (bride), take (groom) to be your husband, 

to be his constant friend, 

his partner in life, and his true love?

To love him without reservation, 

honor and respect him, 

protect him from harm, 

comfort him in times of distress, 

and to grow with?

The Giving of Rings Exchange 

I take you my heart

At the rising of the moon

And the setting of the stars.

To love and to honour

Through all that may come.

Through all our lives together

In all our lives,

May we be reborn

That we may meet and know

And love again,

And remember

The jumping over the wedding broom Is common in Pagan weddings.

The broom represents a new threshold, a new beginning into married life. 

As brooms are used for cleaning and sweeping, it can symbolize the sweeping away of the old from your past to start fresh. The handle of a broom is somewhat phallic in shape and the brush is shaped somewhat like a woman's skirt, so these two things combined can symbolize fertility and union. 

A broom also symbolizes the daily life of being married; caring for one another.

Popcorn has more antioxidants than fruit and vegetables

Yes, we know they mean without butter when proponents of popcorn tells us about the high level of antioxidents and all the great health benefits of plain popcorn.

Plain popcorn has already been hailed as a great diet food for its low calorie content but now a group of scientists claim it may even top fruits and vegetables in antioxidant levels.


Antioxidants - known as polyphenols - have really big health benefits as they help fight harmful molecules that damage cells.


Popcorn was found to have a high level of concentrated antioxidants because it is made up of just four percent water while they are more diluted in fruits and vegetables because they are made up of up to 90 percent water.


Researchers discovered one serving of popcorn has up to 300mg of antioxidants - nearly double the 160mg for all fruits per serving.


They also found that the  hulls of the popcorn have the highest concentration of antioxidants and fiber.

And oh yes, we like butter...on our popcorn.

Now, we realize that butter may have it's issues ( most foods do) but there are lesser-known benefits about butter.

1. It’s Filled with Immune-Boosting Vitamins
Spreading butter on your morning toast may not only improve your body’s immunity, but also help reduce cancer cell growth and increase red blood cell production thanks to vitamins A and D. One tablespoon of butter contains 7 percent and 2 percent of your daily values (DV) of vitamins A and D, respectively. Plus, because both vitamins are fat soluble, butter is a prime vehicle for aiding absorption of nutrients in the body.

2. It Keeps Bones Strong
Thanks to vitamin K and vitamin D, butter may also help increase bone and muscle strength. Known as the [blood] clotting vitamin, vitamin K not only helps maintain bone density but has also been linked to a 30 percent decrease in hip fractures in women who consume at least 110 micrograms per day, according to a study by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Adding one tablespoon of butter to a baked potato accounts for 1 percent of your DV.

3. It Reduces Symptoms of Diabetes
Found almost solely in cheese and butter, sodium butyrate has been linked to an improved response to insulin for patients with diabetes and increased energy in mice, according to a study published by the American Diabetes Association. It may also help alleviate constipation and may even help protect against colon cancer. 

4. It Fights Cancer
Found in dairy products, including butter, conjugated linoleic acid has been tied to tumor reduction in colorectal cancer and may even help fight breast cancer, according to an experimental pathology study conducted at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

5. It’s Better Than Margarine
Contrary to popular belief, some margarines – particularly first-wave varieties – are actually worse for you than butter due to high levels of trans fats. What’s more, researchers have also found that the vegetable fats contained in margarine are more likely to result in death among patients with heart disease than the saturated fat in butter.

6. It May Prevent Tooth Decay
Certain fat-soluble vitamins – including calcium and vitamins A, D and K – which are found in higher amounts in butter from grass-fed cows than in olive oil or margarine, may help fight cavities and even reverse tooth decay, according to research.

So, extra butter please...

Energy Frequency Vibration

 

Footprints In The Sand

Every time we repost this article it stirs up a lot of emotions from people who believe they are helpless.

We aren’t trying to make people angry, but this is how we feel and what we believe.

And so, here it is again…

Faith can move mountains. 

With faith anything is possible, okay, but faith in what, in who?

If they mean faith in your own abilities, in the person you want to become, we would agree.

But sermons on faith usually have little to do with self empowerment.

We find it troubling that people actually believe they are nothing without some higher power pulling the strings.

It's amazing how people are willing to believe in something invisible but not in the things that are right in front of them.

Many choose to ignore it and believe they are nothing without divine intervention.

As Pagans we believe in self empowerment, we are responsible for our own lives, we are at the helm, captains of our own journey, surrendering our power to no one.

We are told to trust the unseen, have absolute faith and hand over all personal power because God is in control of everything.

If we surrender and allow God to work his miracles, everything 

will be just fine.

Having faith in things unproven can be a slippery slope, it's pretending to know things you just don't know.

Telling us that a higher power is in complete control is difficult to understand, where does that leave us?

How do we grow or get stronger if we think someone or something is to to carry us every time we experience life's struggles?

There were only one set of footprints in the sand, in the famous poem we are told, "During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."

We don't need to be carried, we need to learn our strengths and purpose, gain confidence and even though there will be people during your lifetime that will assist and befriend you, those footprints in the sand are yours and yours alone.

The footprints are yours because you decided to get up and walk, because you believe in yourself.

When people are taught that they are helpless, that they are nothing without some unseen higher power, they remain prisoners in their own doubts.

We will keep reminding people that you have the power within you.

As you learn to believe in yourself and reconnect with nature you reconnect with yourself, because we are one with nature.

It is only then you can grow in self worth and lose the chains of guilt, hate, anger and uncertainty.