Candelabras are an excellent addition to your altar to hold your ritual candles as well as to set the mood. Both elegant and romantic, with molten wax flowing down the sides, they can be nothing less than splendid. While you can always buy a candelabra, it is much better to make them yourself and place your imprimatur and your own special kind of magic in them. The following are the steps I learned from the one and only Aurelio Voltaire, who is a writer, musician, animator, graphic novelist, comic, and all-around Renaissance man.
To make your own swords and knives, or athames (pronounced a-THAW-mays), you can affix crystals of your choice onto metalwork you purchase at a New Age store or from a sword specialist. Or, if you purchase an athame that already has crystals, you can change your sword so it is imbued with your energy. The idea of the sword is that you wield it within the spirit world to keep bad energy and negativity at bay. With your sword in your hand, you are the master or mistress of your domain; you rule your circle of magic. The bolline is usually a white-handled knife that is used for making other tools; it can be used only within the magical circle, the boundary you form by marking the four corners and the four directions through speaking ritual.
I love bracelets and am wearing an aventurine cuff right now. The wrists are perfect pulse points. Organic gems, such as coral and abalone, are very helpful for energy low and release. Turquoise is great for stabilizing and calming you physically.
Ancient cultures loved to wear armbands and cuffs, and those have gone out of style except among the most dramatic of fashionistas. Perhaps we should try to bring this style back because gem and crystal armbands are very good for body and soul.
Erin Lale
Fellow faculty at Harvard Divinity School posted an open letter to Wolpe in response to his article. It's available on this page, below the call for p...
Erin Lale
Here's another response. The Wild Hunt has a roundup of numerous responses on its site, but it carried this one as a separate article. It is an accoun...
Erin Lale
Here's another response. This one is by a scholar of paganism. It's unfortunately a Facebook post so this link goes to Facebook. She posted the text o...
Erin Lale
Here's another link to a pagan response to the Atlantic article. I would have included this one in my story too if I had seen it before I published it...