Friday, November 10, 2006

Goddesses in Glastonbury


"Glastonbury is a small town in South West England with a big spiritual tradition. Some people believe that this is where Christianity in England began, and it's still a place of Christian pilgrimage; but it's become a centre for alternative spiritualities, too.

"The Goddess Temple ©

"Glastonbury now has a goddess temple, a sacred space set aside for the exploration and celebration of the Divine Feminine. The Temple, in the loft of an old house, is painted all in purple and decorated with large wickerwork images of various goddesses.

"The Temple, which opened at Imbolc (2 February) 2002, is believed to be the first of its kind to have opened in Europe in fifteen hundred years. SNIP

"Britain's ancient pagan traditions contain many hundreds of goddesses. They are closely bound up with the cycle of nature, with different goddesses being celebrated at different times of year.

"But at heart, all of the goddesses are one, says Kathy Jones, a researcher into Britain's ancient goddess traditions and a priestess of Avalon, as the mystical, invisible side of Glastonbury is known. SNIP

"Goddess worshippers honour the whole cycle of nature, and with it the whole life cycle of women.

"Brian Charles, a priest of Avalon, says that in so doing they reject the strong element in Western culture which casts aside the old woman. Old women are devalued in the modern world because they are of no use to men, since they are no longer potential lovers or mothers.

"But followers of the Goddess not only honour the woman as maiden, lover, and mother, but also as the old woman, or crone."

From a report by the BBC, "Goddess Spirituality in Glastonbury."
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thnx to Susan Sedon Boulet for the picture of the Lady of the Lake (from a foto of a pic I own). Glastonbury is also associated with the Arthurian legends.

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