Oregon daily emerald., October 27, 2000, Page 6B, Image 14

Hallowmas is a far cry from tricks and treats
■ For Women in Conscious
Creative Action, Oct. 31 marks
^ a day of healing and ritual
By Will Wyer
Forthc Emerald
Wp For most students at
the University, this time
of year usually brings
about notions of cos
tumes, parties and possi
bly riots; but for the
women of the pagan spir
itual group WICCA —
Women in Conscious
Creative Action — the
upcoming holiday takes
on a different meaning.
For them Halloween, which
is called Hallowmas in the
pagan tradition, is a time of
healing and ritual.
Hallowmas
“Most pagans think of Hallow
mas as the highest holiday. Meta
physically, it’s when the two
worlds are closest together and the
veil between the two is the
thinnest,” said WICCA founder
mother Norma Joyce. “We honor
the people [who] have passed over
in the past year,” she said.
The women’s group, based in
Eugene, seeks its energy through
goddess figures, which are es
teemed in the pagan religion. They
also stress the importance of recog
nizing responsibility for the care
and survival of Mother Earth.
Joyce, 69, says that’s why they re
fer to themselves as “organic dian
ic,” which is a reference to Diana,
the Roman goddess of the forest.
Hallowmas, celebrated Oct. 31,
is one of eight pagan celebrations
010403
Open Daily 11:00 am - 2:30 am • 2165 W. 11th, Eugene • (541) 344-6897
The sexiest ghosts and
goblins around.
i e t r
Jiggles
Dairy
Queen
CC In WICCA, we find that
strength within ourselves.
Susan Walker
A founding mother of
WICCA 7/
during the calendar year. The festi
vals are six weeks apart. In addi
tion, WICCA members meet once a
week to discuss issues, meditate
and practice rituals.
A circle of solidarity
The WICCA Hallowmas ritual
includes the gathering of women at
a site where the women hold
hands in a circle and attempt to
reach the other side. Not all at
tempts are successful and each rit
ual concludes with a meal.
“After all the spiritual, you need
something physical,” Joyce said.
“When we’re doing ritual and
raising energy by holding hands,
were allowing that electrical ener
gy to pass through us and start
moving,” she continued. “It be
comes stronger and we’re able to
send it out on a wavelength to an
other receiver.”
Growth and tradition
The group formed in the late
spring of 1983 after Joyce became
observant of the pagan tradition
and asked friends if they would be
interested in exploring it with her.
They planned a retreat and the
group has been steadily growing
ever since. While Joyce didn’t ful
ly acknowledge the power of the
goddess until she was an adult, the
knowledge of a greater feminine
power has been with her since she
was a child.
“I knew that there was some
thing there and I knew that the
moon was female even though it
was always the man in the moon,”
Joyce said.
Another founding mother of the
group, Susan Walker, credits the
pagan tradition and that of WICCA
with strengthening her self-identi
ty and that of other women in the
group.
Empowerment
“WICCA has truly empowered
me. It has taught me a lot about... re
sponsibility,” Walker said. “For to
day, this is how I feel and believe
and I’m not told what to think, what
to feel, how to believe. I’m allowed
to figure that out for myself. ”
What’s more, Walker credits the
group with helping her recover
from a car accident that caused seri
ous head trauma 11 years ago.
“I believe that part of my rehabili
tation has come from my spiritual
growth, “Walker said. “I lost part of
my brain and when that didn’t
work, the spirit kind of jumped in
and helped me to function. ”
For the women of WICCA, the pa
gan tradition has become not only a
source of empowerment, it has be
come an integral part of their lives.
“In all of the different spiritual
groups I’ve been involved with, it
was always about how we were too
weak and had look someplace else
for your strength,” Walker said. “In
WICCA, we find that strength with
in ourselves.”
MOKBTTI’S
Halloween Fright Ni#t
Saturday", Oct. 'll, lop./w.
Costume Contest
with more than $500 in scary cash & prizes!
GET YOUR FREAK ON!
Dancing by Big Dawg Productions
$500 Cover / v
On the Corner of
Franklin & Hilyard
730 E. Broadway
344-6673
Zl'Mmn
2 1 and over please
and NIGHTCLUB