“I hold this heart in my hand when I reach into my pocket – that simple act reminds me of who I am and reminds me that each person I meet is someone I want to give this to because we all share the energy of one heart” – Mary
by the Rev. Angie Buchanan, Earth Traditions Church
Summer Solstice is a time of celebration for the “People of the Earth – Pagans. Our gardens are planted, and we celebrate by gathering with friends, feasting, dancing around bonfires, singing, and preparing for the hot summer days ahead.
The word “solstice” comes from the Latin solstitium—from sol (Sun) and stitium (still or stopped). The date of the Summer Solstice varies slightly from year to year. This year it falls on Wed, Jun 21st at 9:57 AM CDT. During this Solstice time, the Sun has reached its highest and northernmost points in the sky and its path does not change for a brief period of time; it appears to “stand still.”
Secularly, the Summer Solstice marks the start of summer in the northern half of the globe. However, in the Celtic traditions, which saw the year divided by dark and light halves, this time of Solstice was also known as “Midsummer.” It marked the midpoint of the growing season, halfway between planting and harvest. This is the longest day of the year and the shortest night.
June is the time of ripe, luscious strawberries, and the Full Moon in June is known as the Strawberry Moon. June, being a respite between planting and harvest, is also the time of love, wedding nuptials, and the drinking of mead, a fermented beverage made primarily from honey, water, and yeast – so the Full Moon in June is also sometimes referred to as the “Honeymoon.”
Yet despite the celebratory nature, as with all natural cycles, there is an undertone of darkness in the light. While we celebrate the power of the sun, we also note its decline. From here on the hours of sunlight will decrease. But for now, we will live in the moment and taste the sweetness of life.
When summertime has come, and all
The world is in the magic thrall
Of perfumed airs that lull each sense
To fits of drowsy indolence;
When skies are deepest blue above,
And flow’rs aflush,—then most I love
To start, while early dews are damp,
And wend my way in woodland tramp
Where forests rustle, tree on tree,
And sing their silent songs to me;
Where pathways meet and pathways part,—
To walk with Nature heart by heart,
Till wearied out at last I lie
Where some sweet stream steals singing by
A mossy bank; where violets vie
In color with the summer sky,—
Or take my rod and line and hook,
And wander to some darkling brook,
Where all day long the willows dream,
And idly droop to kiss the stream,
And there to loll from morn till night—
Unheeding nibble, run, or bite—
Just for the joy of being there
And drinking in the summer air,
The summer sounds, and summer sights,
That set a restless mind to rights
When grief and pain and raging doubt
Of men and creeds have worn it out;
The birds’ song and the water’s drone,
The humming bee’s low monotone,
The murmur of the passing breeze,
And all the sounds akin to these,
That make a man in summer time
Feel only fit for rest and rhyme.
Joy springs all radiant in my breast;
Though pauper poor, than king more blest,
The tide beats in my soul so strong
That happiness breaks forth in song,
And rings aloud the welkin blue
With all the songs I ever knew.
O time of rapture! time of song!
How swiftly glide thy days along
Adown the current of the years,
Above the rocks of grief and tears!
‘Tis wealth enough of joy for me
In summertime to simply be.
Photo: Simon Joseph
This Summer Dr. Lo is on Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota to learn about Native American Spirituality and to see the wonderful work our colleagues, Jennifer Jessum and Simon Joseph, are doing to empower native youth.
Their Mitakuye Foundation offers a wide array of programs including a Summer Arts Program, Filming “The 500 Mile Sacred Hoop Run” and The Black Hills Arts Academy. While Lo and The Guibord Center have partnered with this organization for many years, actually being on the reservation provides a rare opportunity to sit down and learn from community leaders, parents, and youth.
Being able to participate in each of the programs is a humbling and life-changing experience.
Photo: Simon Joseph
Born in Gaza, Palestine, Hedab Tarifi moved to the U.S. after the first Gulf War. She has been active in the Southern California Muslim community since 1994, working to build bridges and bring people together. Hedab served as the first female Chair of the Muslim Public Affairs Council (2007) and the Islamic Center of Southern California (2016).
In 2002, she led the effort to make a quilt in remembrance of 9/11 victims. The quilt now resides in the 9/11 Memorial Museum. Hedab was also featured in “Portrait of Hedab,” an audio diary reflecting on her experience and the Southern California Muslim community after 9/11, on KPCC, Pasadena’s NPR station. The program aired nationwide and won the Golden Mike Award for best documentary. Hedab has served on several nonprofit boards, including the New Horizon School Los Angeles. She continues working with humanitarian organizations to raise awareness of and serve suffering children in Palestine and the Middle East.
Speaker, Light in the Darkness: The Spiritual Struggle for Compassion and Justice in America Today
Rabbi Sharon Brous is the senior and founding rabbi of IKAR.Begun in 2004, IKAR has become a model for Jewish revitalization in the US and beyond. With the goal of reinvigorating Jewish practice and inspiring people of faith to reclaim a moral and prophetic voice, it quickly became one of the country’s fastest growing and most influential Jewish congregations. IKAR is credited with sparking a rethinking of religious life in a time of unprecedented disaffection and declining affiliation.
Rabbi Brous’s 2016 TED talk, “Reclaiming Religion,” has been viewed by more than 1.3 million people and translated into 22 languages. In 2013, she blessed President Obama and Vice President Biden at the Inaugural National Prayer Service, and in 2017, LA Mayor Eric Garcetti at his inauguration. Newsweek/The Daily Beast named Rabbi Brous #1 among the most influential American rabbis, and The Forward and the Jerusalem Post have recognized her as one of the 50 most influential Jews. She was featured on the cover of TIME magazine in 2018 based on Norman Rockwell’s Four Freedoms. A graduate of Columbia University, Rabbi Brous was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and three children. To reach Rabbi Brous, please email christina@ikar-la.org.
Speaker, Light in the Darkness: The Spiritual Struggle for Compassion and Justice in America Today