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A few weeks ago, I attended a shower of a friend that was held by her very devout Christian in-laws. While we gathered around the new mother (baby had decided to arrive a few weeks early), we congratulated her and related our birth stories, celebrating the strength and beauty that women hold -- and this miraculous event that allows us as women to bring life into the world. Then it was time for the prayer.
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For the past several months while writing this column, I have been trying to offer methods of finding a way to inner peace. I think that it is important, regardless of our path (or feeling that we lack one), to be at peace with ourselves and our surroundings. This serves as part of living authentically. Although many people find their source of salvation by walking into a place of worship or calling upon a higher power, others may feel isolated because of their non-belief in a supreme being or due to not fitting in any particular spiritual "thought pool." |
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August 1st marks the pagan holiday, Lammas, also called Lughnasadh, in honor of the Celtic god Lugh. This is the day that celebrates the first harvest of the season and is a wheat festival in the Celtic traditions. If the first crop is good, it is a good omen for the coming harvesting months, as well as a healthy winter. In Ireland, it is still considered bad luck to harvest any crops before August. As a child, I remember visiting my great uncles' farm in Ohio in early August and watching them drive the harvesting combine to gather and shell the corn, which is the first crop that is harvested every year in the United States. In many Christian rural communities, August 1st is the day when the crops are blessed, asking God for a bountiful and financially successful harvest. On Lammas, which means "loaf mass," loaves of bread are placed on the altar to honor the first harvest of the year. |
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