April 8-10: The Three Days of the Writing of the Book of the Law

The crowned and conquering child

This year we celebrate the 115th anniversary of the writing of the Book of the Law, received by Aleister Crowley April 8-10, 1904. With his wife Rose as the medium for what would become known as the Cairo Working, Crowley transcribed communications by the entity known as Aiwass on hotel stationery.

Join Golden Thread Camp’s community reading of the Book of the Law each day of the Three Days (April 8th, 9th & 10th) at 12pm EDT. We will be reading a chapter a day!

All are welcome to participate in reading and just listening. Please try to be online by 11:55am so we can start promptly at noon.

Skype Technical:
To join in, we ask that you make us your contact on Skype by searching our ID which is pittsburgh.thelema. Once you do this we will confirm you as a contact. Please do this in advance to the start time of your first call-in. A little before 12PM EST, call in (with just audio, no video) and we will add you into the group call.

Join Black Sun Lodge, Golden Thread Camp, Sapphire Current Camp and Anabasis Camp for the Holy Season Discussion Group at 8pm EDT.

April 8 GIMEL, The Priestess: Liber CCXX & Liber 31, Cap. I (Nuit)
April 9 BETH, The Magus: Liber CCXX & Liber 31, Cap. II (Hadit)
April 10 ALEPH, The Fool: Liber CCXX & Liber 31, Cap. III (Heru-Ra-Ha)

Skype Information: To join we first ask that you make us your contact on Skype by searching for our Skype Channel name which is ‘Holy Season Discussion Group’. Once you request this we will accept you as a contact. At the start time of the Skype talks, call in to our Channel (with just audio, no video) and we will add you into the group call. Please make sure your Skype is updated before participating.

We hope to hear from you during this joyous time!


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Spring Cleaning – April 6 (Closed to 0°)

Cleaning supplies

11:00am

In preparation for the upcoming celebration of our new Minerval candidates, all those currently Minerval and above are invited to help give the kitchen a deep cleaning and inventory all the items in the kitchen.  If there are many hands this shouldn’t take too long.

Activities include:

  • Pulling it all out of the kitchen
  • Washing all the surfaces
  • Inventorying the items (there is some computer work)
  • Cleaning anything that needs cleaning (fridges will be their own day)
  • Putting it all back in an organized fashion
  • Labeling things
  • Washing the floor

Followed by:

  • Pulling out the equipment for the upcoming initiation
  • If there is time and energy there will be a walkthrough

What will be provided:

  • Lunch (probably pizza)
  • N95 masks
  • One size fits most nitrile gloves

We are only tackling the kitchen. We will tackle the fridges, rooms, and other spaces one by one on future dates.

This event is free. If you are so inclined, your contribution of beverages to share – especially soft drinks – is always welcome!

Tour NASA Goddard Space Flight Center — April 19

Goddard Space Flight Center

Please email contact@williamblakeoto.org to RSVP and confirm attendance for tour.

Join William Blake Lodge for a tour of the Goddard Space Flight Center organized by Soror Hypathia. 

Please arrive no earlier than 9:30am and no later than 9:55am. Tour starts promptly at 10:00am 

“The Goddard Space Flight Center is a major NASA space research laboratory. Activities, exhibits and events at the Goddard Visitor Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, provide inspiring and captivating educational experiences for all ages.

The visitor center demonstrates Goddard’s innovative and exciting work in Earth science, astrophysics, heliophysics, planetary science, engineering, communications and technology development. 

Only 30 minutes from Washington, D.C.; Baltimore; and Annapolis, Maryland, the visitor center gives you the opportunity to explore the universe in your own backyard.” 

Visits and tours are free of charge.

Location: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center: 8800 Greenbelt Rd, Greenbelt, MD 20771 

Pilgrimage to Divine’s Grave – Mar 9

Divine

Born Harris Glenn Milstead 19 October 1945, Divine was an American actor, singer, and drag queen who often appeared in the films of John Waters. People magazine called Divine “The Drag Queen of the Century.” Join us as we visit the resting place of a Baltimore icon!

We’ll probably go for cocktails or a John Waters movie or something after paying our respects.

Location: Prospect Hill Park Cemetery, Towson, Maryland. Divine’s grave is located on the lower level of the cemetery, not far from a parking lot.

Magic in a World of Spirits — April 20

Spirits dancing

Magic in a World of Spirits

Admission: $25; $15 for dues-current WBL members.
Please arrive no earlier than 10:30am.

William Blake Lodge, OTO in Baltimore will be hosting BJ Swain author of Living Spirits: A Guide to Magic in a World of Spirits, to teach two classes and lead a ritual from the book. Join us for a fun and educational afternoon. Schedule pricing and class descriptions below.

Living Spirits Classes and Ritual
11:00 – 1:00: Class One: Mapping and Navigating a Living World
Lunch
1:30 – 3:30: Class Two: Workshopping Rituals to Engage the Spirit World
3:30 – 4:45: Pentacle Consecration

Class One: Mapping and Navigating a Living World – If we begin with the premise that we reside in a living, magical world, in which spirits of various types also reside then we need to know what that world looks like and how its shape influences our magical interactions. In this class we will explore types of spirits, how the spirit world is organized and how that impacts how we approach those spirits. We will also look at how our interactions with spirits, and their social structures and habitats suggests and shapes our course of action with each other.

Class Two: Workshopping Rituals to Engage the Spirit World – Modern systems of magic have generally approached structures drawn on Kabbalah or on dramatic initiation to engage a singular spiritual power, which may or may not be approached as a true spirits. Later occult texts which presented more traditional European magic often called upon God and approached a singular spirit. When we look at contemporary traditional cultures, and even at High Medieval and earlier European magic we see that often many spirits are called upon in facilitating contact with the spirit or spirits who will assist us. As we understand the shape of the world, its spirit residents and their interactions with us and each other we can begin to see how that shape suggest ways of more fully engaging hosts of spirits in ritual. In this class we will look at options for approaching spirits based on a living world full of spirits who serve different roles in the magical structure which surrounds us.

Ritual: Consecration of a Pentacle

Stick around afterwards for a second event: Chilling Adventures at William Blake Lodge


Chilling Adventures at WBL — April 20

hooded figures watching a goat

5:00pm

Chilling Adventures At William Blake Lodge

April 20th is the Easter Vigil, or the Harrowing of Hell. It is the day when the Church is dead and Christ is in Hell.

Thus what better day for some heretical magic?

Join us for some fun, some education, some ritual and some blasphemy as we explore witchcraft and compare it with its very popular recent pop cultural appearance in The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Afterward we will explore how art and ritual can intersect as we engage in a ritual touching on themes of Thelema and historical witchcraft using imagery and aesthetics drawn from Chilling Adventures.

5:00 – 6:30: Witches, the Devil, and Factual Fictions
6:30 – 8:00: A Path of Night Familiar (Ritual)
8:00: Feast of Feasts Potluck Party

Witches, the Devil, and Factual Fictions – In this class we will explore the nature of the Witches’ Devil and certain traditional ideas about witchcraft and compare them to depictions of witchcraft in the recent Netflix series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. When this series came out there were many who were upset about the campy cannibalistic Satanic witchcraft depicted in full 1950s southern church glam. Others enjoyed the grittier darker depiction of magic and witchcraft. Love it or hate it, Sabrina gave a new face to witchcraft in the popular high school supernatural drama genre. So in this class we’ll look at the magic in the show, and we’ll look at witchcraft and The Devil in historical European magic.

A Path of Night Familiar – a ritual which demonstrates the ability of art to provide inspiration for magic. We will explore Thelemic themes present in the magic of the Church of Night, conjure the Witches’ Devil and bind familiars in an act of authentic conspiratorial witchcraft drawing on contemporary artistic aesthetic and traditional historical magic.

A Feast of Feasts – We will celebrate our heresy with a potluck feast, drinks, and unholy fellowship. Join us as we live deliciously. Please bring a dish to share!

$20 admission; $10 for dues-current WBL members

Also earlier in the day, check out our event “Magic in a World of Spirits”


EGC Training — March 23

a golden chalice

Tau Asteria presents policies and practices surrounding Liber XV, the Gnostic Mass. A vital training for aspiring clergy!

There is no charge for this event, but it is recommended only for those who have been baptized into Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica (E.G.C.) and who would like to learn more.

Please bring a snack or beverage to share!

2:00pm-5:00pm: Please arrive no earlier than 1:30pm and no later than 1:50pm.

Gnostic Mass (Open)

a gold chalice

3:30pm Sunday, 20 January 2019
Please arrive no earlier than 3:00pm and no later than 3:20pm

Baptism and confirmation are available at every public Gnostic Mass. Please email contact@williamblakeoto.org to request either sacrament.

$10 admission; free for dues-current WBL members.
Note: admission fee waived for first-time visitors. If this is your first time at a Gnostic Mass, it’s a good idea to read the ritual ahead of time, so you’ll have some idea of what to expect. You can also watch a video, 93 Impressions of a Gnostic Mass.

Aphrodite Ritual (Open to 18+) – Feb 2

Aphrodite in the Forest

5:00pm Saturday 2 February: Please arrive no earlier than 4:30pm and no later than 4:50pm.
$10 admission; free for dues-current WBL members.
Eclectic Witch High Priest Crimson Corvus Luna will lead an Aphrodite Ritual followed by a potluck feast. The focus of the ritual will be to ask the Goddess for self-love, self-confidence, self-healing, and self-transformation. Please plan to wear black robes or all black formal wear.

Adults only! There will be nudity.

Please bring a dish for the potluck feast.

If you plan to imbibe, bring an adult beverage to share.