A ritual for our favorite morning ritual

I am one of those people who try to incorporate the everyday things into my spirituality. Part of that probably comes from a book I read in the mid 80's called Chop Wood, Carry Water by Rick Fields. So in the spirit of the everyday sacred moments I shall now endeavor to combine two of my favorite things... coffee and ritual... this will be a semi-serious Pagan humor philosophical experiment. I'm going to include the whole thought process of developing this. That way you also get a sense of how to put together a ritual. See it's humorous and educational... REAAALLLYYYY. lol

Why coffee? I'm well known for my coffee, for example... an 11 year old who had only known me for a couple months, bought me a bumper sticker saying "There is to much blood in my caffeine system." That should give you an idea how much coffee I drink! Speaking of which my cup is empty, so I think I'll get another...

Why ritual? Simply because it pleases me to mark the moments of life. Some people mark their lives with music or art or poetry or with a job well done... me? I do lots of odd and seemingly random things that interrelate different parts of my life.

Where to begin? Maybe I should combine the process of brewing the coffee, with a simple invocation.... ah I know... a ritual to make the coffee pot a ritual tool, sort of a blessed and charged item which turns the act of brewing into a sacred act with a simple daily prayer to recharge it as it recharges you.

So what do we need?
Well a coffee pot, obviously...

some coffee, I prefer whole bean and grinding it when I make a pot, so I'll include those...

a way to define sacred space, this could take many forms... I'll go for the four classical elements and a simplified ritual form. For me the kitchen is sacred space anyway. It is where the alchemy of cooking takes place.

I will write this rite the right way for a solitary practitioner.
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For the sake of consecrating the coffee maker, I'm going to assume you have a outdoor place you prefer to do ritual, if not, then modify accordingly.

Materials required will vary according to the type of coffee maker you use: On the altar there are coffee scented candles, coffee maker, coffee grinder (if you have one), small bowl of used coffee grounds, and whatever containers you would put out for the sugar, cream, chocolate, etc even if you only keep a little on hand for guests.

CLEANSE THE SACRED SPACE:

(Take the small bowl of coffee grounds and sprinkle around the circle)

Grounds of coffee past
purify where thou art cast
Let only good things come to me,
And as I will So Mote It BE!

(Take the milk and sprinkle around the circle)

Milk where thou art cast
Give protection that will last
Let only good things come to me,
And as I will So Mote It BE!


by the air of the peculator and the drip, the fire that heats it, the water that transforms and the grounds of earth, bound together to bring forth the sacred coffee, come now and join me in this rite.


Hail and welcome Lord Java... keeper of the hidden secrets within the dark depths of the coffee cup, watch over us and give us the strength to get through our days.

Hail and welcome Lady Caffeina... who comes to us in many forms, watch over us and guide our thoughts to that which allows efficient use of our time and energy.

I bring forth these coffee supplies to be blessed and sanctified in your names. As the grinder takes the whole beans and reduces them to smaller useful part, so to shall the large issues of the day be made smaller more manageable part to make things run smoother. Let the carafe be a symbol of the cauldron of rebirth, so that it may bring forth a brew that will renew my body, mind and spirit with each new day. Allow the symbolic and chemical alchemy of the process that turns these separate elements into a glorious cup of coffee so that the air that is my breath, the fire that is my spirit, the water that is my blood, the earth that is my body will be renewed each day.

Lord and Lady and Elements of air, fire, water and earth I honor you with each cup I drink. Stay if you will, go if you must and visit often to join me for a cup of coffee.

Blessed be.
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Remember that where ever you set up your coffee station, you have dedicated it to renew your spirit. Take care of it and keep it clean. Create your own little saying for the morning while making your coffee. Keep it pre-coffee simple... like "Good morning lord and lady. Earth my body, water my blood, air my breath and fire my spirit"

If you are fortunate enough have a coffee maker with a timer, you can make the ritual a little more involved if you so desire.


Well that is it for now. Hope you enjoyed my ramblings.


May you live as long as you want and never want as long as you live.

Religious Pluralism and Relativism

Religious Pluralism sets aside conflicting truth statements and instead focuses on universality and unity of all religions. Religious Relativism on the other hand resolves the conflicting truth statements as being manifestations of divine/human relations. That is to say, religious relativism sees the truth as having been interpreted by certain people at certain time from the perspective of their own cultural upbringing. For instance show a Hindu who knows nothing of Jesus a common picture of Jesus and he will interpret it from the context of his understanding. So different people in different places can quite easily see and experience the exact same thing, but the interpretation and understanding will be different.

To go with a cooking analogy... Pluralism is like taking a few different soup recipes and keeping only what is common to all. This may give you a very nice soup base, but it will lack much in style. Where as Relativism will allow you to enjoy your soup of choice as it is or even different unique flavors of each soup according to your changing desires.

It is obvious I have a bias toward religious relativism. I have a strong preference for rich traditions, high ritual and the subtle theological distinctions where the change of a single word can utterly change the meaning. However I only enjoy it in so much as they can be practiced without being disrespectful toward other traditions.

Yes even though I am an eclectic mystic Pagan, with smattering of Buddhist philosophy and other eastern religious studies... I do still enjoy the occasional Mass and attending Gregorian chant when the opportunity arises.