Living into the parallel between The Christian Community & Biodynamics at the St. John’s-Tide Conference in the Driftless Region of Viroqua WI, we asked many ‘As Above so Below’ questions. Standing in our human uprightness at the center point of the lemniscate, we are the conduit for Spirit to enter Matter. Can we let the Sacrament of Consecration penetrate the hard soil of our soul? As Earth Citizens, we must likewise attend to the reverse ritual - shifting the gesture, to lift matter into Spirit. Will we choose to fulfill our human destiny, by answering to the longing of the Elemental world to be lifted up thru the human encounter?
The highlight for me was the blessing & prep spray at Mastodon Valley Farm. Hearing farmer Peter Allen, whose PHD brought him deep into researching the history & ecology of native Oak Savanna Ecosystems, describe the landscape - it was a revelation to learn that savannas produce a much higher volume of top soil & food: fruit, nuts, & meat - than an unmanaged native forest, which I had, in my ignorance, always thought of as the ideal. And the Driftless Region is perfect with its absence of ‘glacial drift’, to picture the ancient mastodon in that fertile valley. The distinctive terrain, branded by its steep rugged landscape, is part of the Kickapoo River Valley, which Peter called the oldest river in the world. It has the largest concentration of cold-water streams on the planet, which comes from having been bypassed by the last continental glacier, giving the rivers time to carve deeply into the ancient bedrock creating the unique landforms characterized by limestone, dolomite, & gypsum caves, springs & crazy cool sinkholes.
With our bellies full of grace, our hearts leaping with bounteous joy, our heads bowed in recognition of the sacred stewardship of the Earth; our diverse Community from near & far, formed the periphery of a circle at the fountainhead of their Spring, which is at the heart of the farm. We placed the bucket of Sun Preps at the center point: 500 representing the Bread, & horn silica holding the energy of the Wine.
We pulsed from point to periphery in the alchemical exchange between Spirit/Matter & Matter/Spirit. Blessing the farm family: Peter & Maureen & their 3 children.
With UVA stepping up to lead us in a song circle, we invoked the Elementals, consecrating the Spirit of Place, within the Macrocosm. Peter’s enthusiastic imagination of the Native Peoples of the region, & the great Mastodons as the ‘keystone species’ of an age, roaming across North America, brought a powerful resonance to our understanding of their harmonious role in the highly productive savanna ecosystem that his farm seeks to replicate in a renewed way, with the human being taking up the ‘keystone’ for the highest good. Peter & Maureen are not just farmers, they recognize their humanness as a sacred responsibility to take up the rejected ‘Cornerstone’ that the Christ Impulse resurrects - taking up the hard work of being conscious active participants in the restoration & management of dynamic ecosystems that: Build Topsoil - Sequester CO2 – Purify water, to recharge aquifers, & reduce flooding, while enhancing biodiversity – providing habitat for wildlife & many endangered species, native pollinators, & prairie plants.
The Seasonal Epistle heard at the altar at St. John’s Tide cracks open the “Guilt laden seed of humanity, needy of healing, on the field of earth…” So that we can experience the ‘ether spaces radiant with grace’ - to ripen the Christ Sun within our humanness – in ‘lights fullness of Love’ on the ‘glancing rays of Spirit’. To take up The:
Sensing Heaven on Earth at the Mastodon Farm, its easy to forget how much of a sacrifice the farmer carries. And of course, the archetype of: Farmer - is a metaphor for every striving human being - often used as the theme for many parables in the Gospels.
In our breakout session with Erin in Eurythmy we worked with Matthew 13:24-30: The Parable of the Weeds “Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a farmer who sowed good seed in their field. But while everyone was sleeping, their enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. “The helpers asked the farmer, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ “‘No,’ they answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time, I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’” By embodying the eurythmy gestures for weed, & for wheat, I came to a new way of attending life. Such a relief that I don’t need to sweat & fret over the weeds - that actually, putting so much effort into attacking what I don’t want, I am in reality doing a dis-service to the good seed that I want to foster. St. John’s Tide admonishes us to acknowledge & accept it all. To recognize the work of ‘the enemy’ in the garden of our soul, & to winnow when the time is right.
Can we sense the eternal in the transitory? How can we express the eternal thru our thoughts, words & deeds? What symbols, or art forms can we employ?
In Goethe’s Faust, that tale of the ever-striving human being, after all the peaks & valleys, consciousness of the deepest regions of the soul are mystically represented in the figure of the “Eternal Feminine,” out-pictured in the representative title of Mary the Virgin as Queen of Heaven:
The Hope filled open ending of the Faustian journey brings us the monumental words that Rudolf Steiner calls ‘Wisdom eternal’, sung by the Chorus Mysticus, giving utterance to the Mystery that “All things transitory are but a symbol.” - A parable that prepares the way – a path that leads us into the meaning of “dying & becoming” as spoken by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, which we heard from the altar on 29 June, the Feast Day of Saints Peter and Paul. Goethe tells us:
This eternal truth can’t really be described - it can only be discovered thru initiatory experience. It is unutterable, living in the naked clefts of the soul that cannot be clothed in words coined for the temporal world:
We are guided in our seeking, by the power of our own soul - dimly sensed when we listen for that still small voice:
With this indication, the Chorus Mysticus concludes the drama. And with this inspiration I arrive back home, to work on my offering for the Feast Day of Mary Magdalene coming up on 22 July 2024. ~hag
Celebrating the Feast of Mary Magdalenew/ Hazel ArcherThrough the Gospel of Mary Magdalene take an initiatory journey honoring a sacred purification process. This course for the Infinity Foundation is available on Zoom. You will be emailed a Zoom link closer to the time of the class. The course will also be recorded and you will receive a link to watch it. Course 242133 | Zoom If you need assistance registering contact: Nancy Grace Marder, Executive Director
In Recognition & Celebration of The Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mysteria Mystica Americana (MA) will share a free online offering featuring an innovative rendering of Rudolf Steiner’s ‘New Isis Myth’ Thursday 15 August 2024 on Zoom 7 PM – 8:30 PM Central Time Stay tuned for more details
~ jbconradoIn preparation for the Michaelmas Season, Please join us on the Autumnal Equinox Sunday 22 September 2024 fro1 PM – 2:30 PM Central Time For an online Community gathering employing Head, Hands & Heart, including Leading Thoughts shared by Mysteria Mystica Americana (MA) Stay tuned for more details
Here is a link to recordings of our past offeringsHere is a link to the Podcast “I Think Speech”
4 - 6 October 2024 Annual Southeast Biodynamic Conference - Celebrating the 100-year anniversary of biodynamic agriculture. Hosted by Jeff Poppen ‘the Barefoot Farmer’ Long Hungry Creek Farm in Red Boiling Springs, TN
If you want to support the Spiritualization of the Earth thru the Biodynamic Farming done on Zinniker Farm, you are invited to become a paid subscriber, with all donations going directly to the farm
Greetings Friend, you currently a free subscriber to Cognitive Ritual. Thank you for receiving my workings freely offered. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription. ALL donations go to support Zinniker Farm - The oldest Biodynamic Farm in America! Together we can spiritualize the Universe. XOX ~hag
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Monday, 1 July 2024
The Priest/Farmer & the New Mastodon
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