Female Wine Blessing

Lynna Landstreet

The Goddess calls originate from an all-female version I wrote of the Dedication ritual of the Odyssian tradition. The original was written by Richard and Tamarra James. This version follows the structure of the original fairly closely, and maintains some of the original lines, so if you like it, credit is due to Richard and Tamarra at least as much as to me.

Ditto for the Wine Blessing, as it is a modified version of the Odyssian standard WB.

One priestess represents the Moon Goddess (the conventionally feminine role), and the other the Sun Goddess (the conventionally masculine role). We half-jokingly called this the butch-femme wine blessing...

Goddess Calls

SG:

I am She who shone forth from the Dark of Night,
When time was begun.
Lady of the Sea, join Me,
And let all things be formed of Our union.
Thou who art called Artemis, Hecate, Cerridwen, Isis.
Giver of love, protection, and the joy of life,
Goddess of the Earth, Moon and Sea,
Ruler of the Night,
Mistress of Magic, Keeper of the Mysteries.
Ascend to Me on bright and silvered wing.
For lo, I receive these gifts of Thee:
Life, and love, and gifts from the Sea.
I am the Sun, the Sun that calleth Thee.
I am the arching Sky that covers Thee.
Come unto Me, my Lady, come unto Me,
And be welcome.
Hail, and blessed be.

MG:

I am She who rose from the depths of the Sea,
When time was begun.
Lady of the Bright Sky, join Me,
And let all things be formed of Our union.
Thou who art called Athena, Bast, Sekhmet, Amaterasu.
Giver of strength, guidance, and the will of life,
Goddess of the Sun, Sky, and Winds,
Ruler of the Day,
Bringer of Justice and Voice of Truth.
Descend to Me on bright and golden wing.
For lo, I receive these gifts of Thee:
Life, and strength, and fullest ecstasy.
I am the Sea, the Sea that calleth Thee.
I am the waiting Earth that welcomes Thee.
Come unto Me, my Lady, come unto Me,
And be welcome.
Hail, and blessed be.

Wine Blessing

MG anoints SG and hands her the athame.

MG

Bright Lady, thou art the Sun.
Thy heat is radiant.
Warrior Maiden, Giver of the Law,
Here is the athame,
The Air and Fire are contained within it,
As are their powers.

SG anoints MG and hands her the chalice.

SG

Dark Lady, thou art the Moon,
Giver of dreams and visions.
Wise One, Teacher of the Mysteries,
Here is the chalice,
The Earth and the Sea are contained within it,
As are their powers.

SG

I am the spark of life,
The well of flame wherein dwells all power and potential.

MG

And I am the primal matter,
The core of earth that gives shape and form to that power.

Both

Neither one can work without the other.
One without the other is incomplete.

SG

Mine are wisdom and knowledge, passion and pride.

MG

And mine are love and dreams, silence and mystery.

Both

To learn you must suffer,
To live you must be born,
To be born you must die.
The beginning, continuation and the end,
Over and over.

SG

The Sun brings forth light,

MG

And the Moon holds it in darkness.

SG

As above,

MG

So below.

SG

(Raises athame) And as the athame is one half of our divine nature,

MG

So the chalice is the other.

Both:

(Athame into chalice) And conjoined they be one in truth,
For it is in the Dance that Life is born,
In the balance that truth is found,
And there is no greater power in all the world
Than that of Love.