I couldn't bring myself to have my children baptised into any kind of religion when they were babies, but would now like them to experience some kind a rite of purely spiritual blessing, so they'll always that know they belong to Light (for whenever the going gets tough in the future...:).
Can anyone suggest appropriate, but simple, ritual(s), that could be performed at the beach or in a forest?
How do I choose a person who would perform those rituals?
Can a friend do it, providing they are spiritually 'inclined'?
What about godparents, and their role in the ritual(s)?
Any suggestions and experiences would be greatly appreciated.
2007-02-02 05:23:53 · 13 answers · asked by Klara B. 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Take the children and any moral role models or mentors and yourself out into the woods for a camp out on a full moon.
Set aside an area that is to be treated as special. No one is to enter it until the blessing. It can be a circle or triangle or whatever shape you want. In the middle, prepare a fire pit and start a fire.
When the time comes for the blessing, invite the child(ren) to join you in the place. Have them sit on one side of the fire, and begin with the following (Borrowed from Babylon 5 -- the truth can be found in the strangest places sometimes)
"The Universe speaks in many languages, but only one voice. [Line deleted, B5 specific] It speaks in the language of hope; It speaks in the language of trust; It speaks in the language of strength, and the language of compassion. It is the language of the heart and the language of the soul. But always, it is the same voice. It is the voice of our ancestors, speaking through us, And the voice of our inheritors, waiting to be born. It is the small, still voice that says: We are one. No matter the blood; No matter the skin; No matter the world; No matter the star; We are one. No matter the pain; No matter the darkness; No matter the loss; No matter the fear; We are one. Here, gathered together in common cause. we agree to recognise this singular truth, and this singular rule: That we must be kind to one another, because each voice enriches us and ennobles us, and each voice lost diminishes us. We are the voice of the Universe, the soul of creation, the fire that will light the way to a better future. We are one."
Then, each mentor should give a small gift to the child. This gift should be chosen to reflect the one great truth that mentor would give that child to live by. It is not necessary that it be an obvious reflection, just that it will become that child's link to the lesson.
Then look up and point to the moon. "Do you see? The moon produces no light. Yet it guides us through the darkness when it gives what it is given without greed, without shame, without hesitation. It receives the light, and it gives the light. You too must be a mirror of the Light, whatever form you might find that light in during the journey of your lives."
Conclude with lots of hugs and go eat dinner together.
[There is another of G'Kar's passages that you might find interesting and insightful, his lecture on the nature of the search for truth. I will not quote it here, you may find it at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G'Kar ]
2007-02-02 05:33:29 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Hmm... most blessings for children that I know involve asking a God (or Goddess) to protect the child. I will look and see if I can find one that doesn't or adapt one for you. :-)
Now the Christian usage of using water to baptize or bless wasn't original, it original was a Pagan tradition. So feel free to use water if you like. Salt is also sometimes used to purify, so having the ceremony by the beach is an excellent idea because you'd be surrounded by salt water. You don't need any tools and and anyone who is close to your kids can preform the ceremony, even yourself if you wanted to. Instead of asking any particular God to protect, just ask the Light to shine on them and fill they're hearts with warmth and happiness, protect them in their journey though life.
2007-02-02 05:29:50 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
You might get some good ideas of what the blessing should include by listening to or reading THE 7 SPIRITUAL LAWS OF SUCCESS.by Deepak Chopra.
I love this book.
A lot of people are turned off by religion because its used to manipulate.I'm a Christian and I'm turned off a lot of times.
Don't let people keep you from learning the message of love from the Bible.Learn it for your self. .
2007-02-02 08:59:55 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Many parents are choosing to have "naming ceremonies" now. I think that as it's something that will be personal to you then you can do whatever you want to do. You could still choose "God parents" , maybe you could also ask friends/family members to get involved and say a few words/read poems etc...
2007-02-02 05:34:29 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why don't you wait untill there old enough to decide on there own? The Bible talks about a free choice. God gives us a choice to go to heaven or not, and being baptised or "blessed" at that young age isnt going to ensure that your child is going to heaven. otherwise that child can do what ever he or she wants and knows that no matter what he or she will go to heaven. We all have to make a choice.
2007-02-02 05:31:57 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
try the Humanist Society, they have a website (should be easy to find on google) with suggested prose for various ceremonies. Might be worth a look and they have people who perform these ceremonies too.
2007-02-02 05:36:45 · answer #6 · answered by gorgeousfluffpot 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
a simple ritual would be to go to a beach and have a preacher come and dip you child{dip not drowned} into the water for 10sec. Yes a friend can do it but they have to be siritually inclined. Yes even your god parents can to!!!!!!
2007-02-02 05:30:28 · answer #7 · answered by blackdeath92 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Sure!
Lots of wiccan parents do what's called a "wiccaning" similar to what you describe.
You could create a blessing from the Universe for them, invite friends/family, and either perform it yourself or have a friend or family member do it.
if you need more help, feel free to contact me offsite.
2007-02-02 05:29:48 · answer #8 · answered by Kallan 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What i got from the question is that there is no requirement to do anything. if you belive something then who told you that your survivals must follow the same thing. Therefore dont force anyone to submit anything.
2007-02-02 05:28:20 · answer #9 · answered by Nishu T 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
kudos for your ability to think outside the box. not sure about who could do this kind of thing for you, but i think if any kind of religion would be open to this, it would be of the pagan variety.
2007-02-02 05:41:35 · answer #10 · answered by LoriBeth 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋