After posting the question “What does your spiritual practice look like?” to the Naturalistic Pagans email list, I was drawn to Eli’s response. I knew immediately we had to publish it. – B. T. Newberg
I have both practice and practice. I practice the small, daily and seasonal rituals that form the face of pretty much all religions, and I also have more long-term habits that reflect the spine of my personal spiritual beliefs.
Every morning when I wake up, I say good morning to place. I say:
“Good morning, Cosmos; good morning, Milky Way; good morning, solar system,” and so on down to “good morning, Eli.”
When I get in bed each night, I say my goodnights in reverse.
I say this grace before meals:
“Thank you to the plants and animals whose lives were taken to feed my body; someday, my body will feed your descendants. Thank you to the people who made this food and brought it to me; may we continue to nourish each other in ways that sustain this beautiful and sacred living planet.”
I have other small practices throughout the day, mostly tied to mindfulness and intentionality, the bedrocks of my beliefs.
Because we started out Wiccan, my wife and I honor the Wiccan Sabbats and Esbats as logical reflections of natural cycles. Our celebrations range from full-out ecstatic ritual, complete with circle-casting, divination, and power raising to simply going for a walk to appreciate what’s in bloom, what the weather’s like, or what the crazed neighborhood squirrels are up to.
I also try, inasmuch as a black-thumbed urbanite can, to live in balance with the living world around me. I choose local, seasonal, organic foods whenever possible. I compost and recycle. I grow a few food plants. In clement weather, I challenge myself to have as many car-free days as possible – and to expand my definition of “clement weather” to include as many days as possible. I donate my time, money, and energy to organizations whose work aligns with my values.
The place where these two types of practice most overlap for me is in cycling. I recently wrote a whole blog post about the spiritual aspects of cycling. It is a reflection of my deepest beliefs about the nature of the sacred and my part in it, and a ritual in itself.
I get all swoony just thinking about it!
Eli Effinger-Weintraub also talks about her practice of naturalistic spellcraft in a recent interview at The Secular Buddhist.
So there you have it. Now, readers, how about your response?
What does your practice look like?
Eli Effinger-Weintraub
Eli Effinger-Weintraub is a naturalistic Pagan rooted in the Twin Cities Watershed. She practices a mongrel brand of Reclaiming-tradition hearthwitchery influenced by Gaia theory, naturalistic pantheism, bioregional animism, Zen Buddhism, and the writings of Carl Sagan. But she tries not to think too deeply about any of that and mostly just rides her bicycle, instead. Eli writes plays, creative nonfiction, and short speculative fiction, often inspired by the visual art of her wife, Leora Effinger-Weintraub. She is also a mercenary copyeditor. Find her online at Back Booth.
Appearing August 28th on Humanistic Paganism.
Then, in two weeks: Rua Lupa is back! This time she reveals her visionary naturalistic path called Ehoah. Don’t miss it: “Balance within nature: An interview with Rua Lupa.”
Appearing September 4th on Humanistic Paganism.
From the review:
“…when I saw the finished product, I was blown away”
“…will anger readers with a strict sense of faith, and provoke those with an interest in exploring outside their own own beliefs”
“…a candid dialogue between three devotees of three very different paths, exploring one of the greatest forces to shape the history of religion: nature itself”
– Drew Jacob
NEW: Get Encounters in Nature on your e-reader!
Now available in pdf and epub!
The pdf is also free to view online at Scribd – embedded for your convenience below!
Pages: 70, Color photos: 39, Audio: 1 hr 12 min
© 2011. All rights reserved.
Recorded with a Blue Yeti microphone on a Macbook
Should you experience troubles with the audio Flash player, you can also get the show free on iTunes Store.
Much more than a transcript, this is an audio-visual experience. Illustrated with lush full-color photography throughout, and accompanied by audio podcast links, the conversation comes alive. Here’s a screen shot:
On top of that, the conversation is complemented with a selection of Bonus Materials. Check out the Table of Contents:
Introduction
Section I. An Open-air Dialogue in the North Woods
1. Sharing of Paths
2. Three Eyes on Nature
3. Story Time
4. Going Wild
5. Bringing It Home
Section II. Bonus Materials
What is Humanistic Paganism? by B. T. Newberg
The Heroic Life, by Drew Jacob
Oungan François, by Urban Haas
A Review of Drew Jacob’s Walk Like a God, by B. T. Newberg
This was a labor of love, done in the spirit of dialogue, so download it and share it widely with your friends. Tweet it, share it on Facebook, Stumble it, and email it around.
Here are some more screenshots to entice you…
Download it now, and share it widely!
Last but not least, share in the conversation yourself! Speak up in the comments section.
What’s your story of an encounter in nature?
Encounters in Nature: An Open-air Dialogue in the North Woods
With Celtic Polytheist Drew Jacob, Vodou Priest Urban Haas, and Humanistic Pagan B. T. Newberg
Author: B. T. Newberg
Pages: 70
Color photos: 39
Audio: 1 hr 12 min
Formats: pdf, epub
Price: Suggested $8
© 2011
The shoreline at sunset
Encounters in Nature: An Open-air Dialogue in the North Woods
with Celtic polytheist Drew Jacob, Vodou priest Urban Haas, and Humanistic Pagan B. T. Newberg
Part 5: Bringing It Home
In today’s segment, the last in a 5-part series, we talk about what sticks with you after return from nature to your daily life.
B. T. promotes valuing nature no matter what others think or say, Urban observes how nature transforms and lifts up the soul, and Drew finds the fruit of living in nature to be none other than confidence and freedom.
All this and a crackling fire today on Encounters in Nature.
And now a question for you:
What do you “bring back” from an experience in nature that sticks with you for the rest of your life?