Yule

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On the Eighth Day of Christmas, My True Love Gave to Me...

Yule

I am not very open about my religious and spiritual beliefs but today we're going to talk about it a little bit. I grew up in a nondenominational evangelical Christian church, full of hate and fire and brimstone. I went off and on throughout high school and into college as I was still living at home with my parents. I'd been an unbeliever in Christianity, especially a literal interpretation of the Bible since I hit puberty but my final falling out with the church happened as a young adult when I took a stand against a fellow, older member of the church whose husband was an elder. I was basically told to put up or shut up and that ended my church-going days. 

After being essentially kicked out of the church I grew up in I began to explore "alternative" spirituality before being drawn to paganism, specifically witchcraft. As I did more exploring of different forms of paganism and witchcraft I was particularly drawn to kitchen witchcraft. 

That is a kitchen witch from Norway, which is hung in kitchens for good luck and protection.

Kitchen witchery is putting the intent and will that is the basis behind all witchcraft into the hearth and kitchen that is the center of the home. I take a lot of pride and care in cooking from scratch and take care of my collection of herbs and cookware. Cooking is magic in and of itself and then adding the intent and will behind witchcraft into it just makes sense. 

I don't subscribe much to deity practice in my witchcraft but my symbolic deities are Hades (death, the underworld, and balance) and Persephone (springtime). I subscribe to the idea that Persephone wasn't a victim but a victor. This means that my most important sabbats are Mabon and Ostara. Mabon is the autumnal equinox, the first day of autumn, and the day that Persephone descends into the underworld to take up her crown. Ostara is the vernal equinox, the first day of spring, when Persephone returns to her mother in Olympus. Other holidays are also special but those two in particular. 

Yule is the first day of winter. It's the shortest day of the year with the longest night. It is the return of the sun, the day in which the sun begins to return and days slowly begin creeping longer. It's a time for reflection for the coming year and includes welcoming the sun back and cleansing the home for the coming year. 

The way that I celebrate Yule is by cooking, as I celebrate all my festivals. Traditional foods for Yule include: cider, fruits, nuts, pork, turkey, eggnog, ginger, tea, wassail, apples, mulled wine, beans, and oranges. Tonight's yule meal is Yuletide Pork Pie from the website recipes for a pagan soul. Currently, the filling is cooling down so that I can fill my pie tins and bake them. My home smells of pork and spices and winter comfort. Alongside the pork pie we'll have a cranberry/apple relish and we may open a bottle of sparkling cider or make some hot apple cider. 

In past years I've also made a yule log which is a normal log for the fireplace that is decorated with winter greenery such as holly, mistletoe, evergreen boughs and candles. I live in an apartment now and have nowhere safe to light the candles on a yule log, never mind burning the log afterwards. 

That is mostly what I do for yule, cooking/baking, yule logs and candles. I think to sum up how I feel about today, about yule in general goes back to one of my favorite episodes of Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol the 2010 Christmas Special with Matt Smith's 11th Doctor. He's speaking to Kazran Sardick, the Ebenezer Scrooge character, about how he reminds him of Christmas: "halfway out of the dark". That's the phrase I always think of during Winter Solstice and Yule every year when I look at the lights on the Christmas tree and the candles and firelight...halfway out of the dark. 

Blessed Yule!

Richelle