December 2010 Newsletter & Daily Devotionals

This newsletter is a publication of the Mystical Order of the White Rose, a multifaith devotional and spiritual support organization. We support and share information about mystical, monastic, contemplative and creative ways of living. We encourage prayer, the reading of sacred scripture(s), lectio divina, meditation, journaling, solitude, fasting, silence, kindness, hospitality, worship, simplicity, creativity, active involvement in spiritual and/or religious communities, and loving service to others. You can view past issues here and you can subscribe to it here .

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This Issue's Themes: Advent, Christmas, Birth of the Son, Birth of the Sun, Light/Darkness, Rebirth of the Sun, Rose(s), Snow, Winter, Winter Solstice, Yule

As you can see, there are many themes in this issue; too many to touch upon, even lightly, in the space I usually allocate for the newsletter portion of this publication. This month, I have so much material relating to these themes that I am distributing it throughout the 31 webpages of our December 2010 Daily Multifaith, Multi-Media Devotionals. You could say this is a kind of Christmas gift from me to you; a much more substantial offering than usual.

This issue of the MOWR Newsletter is a "recycled" version of the December 2009 newsletter. I have added some material to the devotionals and tweaked on a few other things. Still, the link is the same as for the December 2009 newsletter.

With Bright Blessings and Best Wishes for Joyful Holy Days,

Cynthia

Cynthia Kiteley Lee

Founder, Administrator & Editor, Mystical Order of the White Rose

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Melting Into One Another

by Cynthia Kiteley Lee

You know how the first photographs of the earth, our beautfiul blue and white planet, gave us literally and figuratively a different perspective on our home planet?

Well, I recently had the same kind of shift in perspective after reading the results of the analysis of my DNA. I provided the company (DNA Tribes.com) with four cheek swabs and my mother and father's ancestry were both traced.

The results were lumped together, so there was no way of separating out which genetic lines went with which parent. The family geneaology information, albeit somewhat sketchy, has strongly indicated that most of my ancestors were English, on both my mother's and father's side, but this information goes back "only" three hundred years or so.

My DNA analysis traced ancestry both in the very distant past as well as contemporary times. I paid for an extra report on my European ancestry that provided more details. The general report showed that my distant past ancestry was mostly from Germanic Tribes, followed by Scandinavian ancestry, followed by Eastern European (Polish and Russsian). Those were the top three. There were a lot more, including a bit of Afghan DNA.

Contemporary matches showed that my DNA most closely matches Celtic people; those living in Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The extra detailed report showed two cities in Scotland where there were very significant matches! Strathclyde and Dundee, on opposite sides of the coast. This kind of information is, well, mind blowing. The Germanic tribes (and so on) followed after the Celtic headliner.

Taken altogether, the DNA report made me realize how we--humanity--in our collectivity-- have melted into one another over and over again, over millennia. When you factor in past lives (as I do) I, and many of you, have been male and female, Black and White, Asian and Native American, Aborigines and Latin Americans, poor and rich, kind and cruel, wise and foolish, conservative and liberal.

The many faces and many races melted together through inter-marrage, rape, slavery, and extra-marital liaisons. How can we let different skin colors and nations' borders divide us so when we have a history of being so melted into one another?

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Varied Resources for: Holy Days and Daily Inspiration

Astronomy Picture of the Day

The Writer's Almanac:-- Poems, prose, and literary history every morning from Garrison Keillor direct to your inbox. Delivered daily.

Living In Season by Waverly Fitzgerald.

Interfaith Calendar (December 2009)

Orthodox Calendar from Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

Celtic and Old English Saints Calendar December 2010

Celtic Wheel of the Year

The Liturgical Calendar of the Celtic Catholic Church and December Observances

Church of England Calendar of Saints

Episcopal Church Liturgical Calendar for December 2010

Order of Julian of Norwich Ordo Kalendary 2009-2010 Daily Offices

The Gnostic Calendar--A Mandala of Wholeness

Esoteric Christo-Pagan Calendar of Events and Observances

Pagan Calendar

2010 Wiccan Calendar

Druidic Holy Days

The Goddess Lunar Calendar

Catholic Liturgical Calendar for Advent 2010

Islamic Holy Days & Calendar

Hindu Festivals Calendar 2010

Jewish Holy Days Calendar for December 2010

Daily Moon Phase for December 2010

Interactive Advent Calendar with information about Christmas traditions from around the world.

The St. Margaret Mary Advent Calendar, featuring some beautiful space photos and brief quotes from the psalms.

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Daily Multi-Faith, Multi-Media Devotionals for December 2010

Each day we should expose ourselves to the inspiration of others. Thousands of saints and wise men and women have left us messages of hope and encouragement. Read what is honest. Read the scriptures and the commentaries. Read great literature and poetry. Read the psalms. Read that which expresses the anguish and the exhilaration of experience, and teaches us that we are not alone.

- John McQuiston II, p. 88, Always We Begin Again--The Benedictine Way of Living

These devotionals also serve as excellent "journaling prompts" for written reflections.