HAGIA SOPHIA - November 2004
Holy Wisdom

(Ritual written by Janine Donnellan)

NAME: SOPHIA which is the Greek version of Her name, other names and titles are Binah (Hebrew -understanding-), Chokmah – (Hebrew – Wisdom), Sapienta (Latin), Mother-Of-All (Gnostic), Holy Spirit (very early Christians), Wisdom (what the other names mean).

SYMBOLS: A cup, the crescent moon, a dove, a tree.

USUAL IMAGE: A red winged woman, crowned with seven stars, at Her feet lies the World, She carries a golden cup.

HOLY DAYS: November 28th is the Day of Sophia.

RELATIVES: Yahweh (ex-husband or son or both), Adam, Eve, Lilith, angels (children), Christ, who entered Jesus (son), Achamoth, who entered Mary Magdalene (daughter.)

SYNODEITIES: Isis (Egyptian), Juno   (Roman), Hera (Greek), Frigga (Norse) Spider Grandmother (Native American), Inanna (Sumerian), Tara (Tibetan) Yemaya (African- Caribbean), Amaterasu (Japanese), Pachamama (Incan), Changing Woman (Navajo and Apache), Danu (Celtic).

DETAILS: Sophia, is the primary female figure of Judao- Christianity, She was once very important, but because of the efforts of men who had a very serious problem with the female force in nature and themselves She has all but been expunged from modern Bibles. She was the veiled holy spirit of wisdom, pregnant with knowledge and inviting us to drink deeply from Her cup.

BLACK GODDESS
When we venture into the Unknown, into the Dreamtime, into the Void, we approach the sacred realm of the Black or Dark Goddess, who is none other than "veiled" Sophia. In the Western world, we have been taught to fear the Dark, and the reclaiming of the Dark as a place of creative power has been slow to gain recognition again. Therefore we are likely to look upon the Black/ Dark Goddess aspect with some trepidation. Yet there are always those among us who, despite fear or perhaps because of it, are ready to venture into the unknown, and it is these attempts to reach beyond the veil, to expose this "secret" who is Life, which ultimately leads us to the most intimate contact with our own souls. Through the experience of Life's adventures we come to know the Dark Goddess in all her terror and glory. The more engaged we are in the living of our own lives, the more potent, the more rewarding is that knowledge which then, like fruit left on the vine, can ripen into wisdom and truth. We become Priestesses of the Sacred Dance, daughters of Sophia, dancing upon a sacred Earth. We become infused with wisdom, awesome in our potency, in our ability to create; the world is the product of the creator.

Remembering Sophia, we become agents of healing, as we recognize the unity that we are, rather than the duality which has been thrust upon us by the divisive philosophies we have inherited from our forbears. The dark and the light are interdependent; one does not exist without the other. Together they create Wholeness.

Open the Quarters

Air awakens us
As we feel it flow through our being.
Air transports us
As it carries us to a new consciousness.
Raphael, might angel of Air I call for you
So mote it be. OM

Fire transforms us
As it reveals our true essence
Fire empowers us
As we stand as our true self.
Michael, mighty angel of Fire I call for you
So Mote it be. OM

Water shifts us
As it carries us from the past to the present and into the future
Water connects us
As its fluidity makes all as one.
Gabriel, mighty angel of Water I call for you
So mote it be. OM

Earth grounds us
As it gives us a firm place on which to stand.
Earth regenerates us,
As it takes the substance of our being and makes us new.
Auriel, Mighty angel of Earth I call for you
So Mote it be OM

Goddess

Mighty Sophia Goddess of Wisdom
You are the breath
You are the wind
You are the eternal flame that lives within
We offer ourselves to you.
May your presence rise
In acceptance of this offering
So mote it be.

God

Mighty Yaweh
The divine spark
We call for you.
May your light descend and fill this space.
Uniting with the Mother
May this place and all herein be manifest potential.
So mote it be.

Prayer of Sekhet-a-ra

"[Sophia], of thy wisdom, teach me to be a flame for the benighted ones, so that I may warm their hearts and light their darkness, until of their own knowledge, they can kindle their own fire, and having kindled it can leave the darkness and dwell at last in the light of the sun."

Song

Hail Sophia Goddess of Wisdom
Goddess for humanity
Goddess of the feminine
Hail Black Goddess, Goddess of Freedom
Goddess of Empowerment
Goddess of Reason

Closing

Goddess

We thank you Sophia
For your presence
Hail and farewell

God

We thank you Yaweh
For your presence,
Hail and farewell.

May love and peace reside in all our hearts.

Auriel, Mighty angel of Earth
Spirits of the Earth
We thank you and honour you
Hail and Farewell.

Gabriel, Mighty angel of Water
Spirits of the Water
We thank you and honour you
Hail and Farewell.

Michael, Mighty angel of Fire
Spirits of the Fire
We thank you and honour you
Hail and Farewell.

Raphael, Mighty angel of Air
Spirits of the Air
We thank you and honour you
Hail and Farewell.

May this circle be open but unbroken
May the peace of the Goddess be ever in our hearts.
Merry Meet and Merry Part
and Merry Meet again.