You Say Lughnasadh I Say Lammas

August 1st marks the first day of pagan harvest. Today is one of the four major pagan holidays, this particular holiday is called Lughnasadh. For the Celts this holiday marked the day that harvest was brought in, the first day of fruits and vegetables and the start of the out-door market and festival season.

Lughnasadh was a celebration of the hard work of summer, a time of handfastings and gatherings of family and friends. Lughnasadh was a reminder that life was still turning in full circle and an acknowledgement of what nature had provided to help everyone survive the next winter.

When the Gaelic people started converting to Christianity (in various forms) most of Northern Europe changed the holiday to Lammas or loaf mass which was the day you brought your first loaf of bread from your autumn harvest with you to church and presented it to your landlord as proof that you were properly tending to the crops provided to you. The landlord would then give the loaf to the church as an offering and there would be a huge festival to celebrate bounty of crops and fresh food that was soon to follow.

One of the strangest things about converting to Christianity for me was people's sudden belief that I would have to alter all my holidays. Most pagan holidays and Christian holidays happen around the same times and are celebrated in very very similar ways (also Christianity was a part of my childhood so Christmas and Easter never left my holiday list). There are only two exceptions, Lammas and Samhein.

Last year at Samhein I didn't do much, I stayed home with family. I was unsure of where the line stands between celebrating a holiday and enjoying a tradition. It was like I feared making God angry even though I knew he was a loving and forgiving God who would know I was trying to find my way. So I hid for an entire holiday.

Lammas so far is easier to adjust to. A celebration of the circle of life today I said extra prayers for the people in my family both new and old, for my unborn child and for my upcoming move. I don't have a crop so I won't be making bread but I did stop by the church this morning and make a small offering to the homeless program. My "loaf" so to speak won't feed many at their next Sunday celebration but it is my offering.

The thing I am learning about Christianity is that God is all about your intentions. I intend on celebrating the circle of life that God has planned for me today as I focus on the little things that he has brought to me...my own personal harvest of hope, love and grace.