A Magical Reading of UU Initiation: One Woman’s Ordination

Last updated on: May 7, 2018 at 3:07 am by Rev. Catharine Clarenbach

A Magical Reading of UU Initiation: One Woman’s Ordination 2018-05-07T03:07:43+00:00 Rev. Catharine Clarenbach

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The Magical Gift: The Stole

the stole with Four Elements

After the rite of ordination, in the UU tradition as I follow it, the stole is bestowed upon the newly ordained minister. The stole is a magical/ritual tool and symbol reserved for the ordained. It is the yoke for pulling/carrying the tasks of ministry, both heavy and light. It connects one minister to another. It connects the ordained to her understanding of the Ultimate. It is the mantle of the feminine faces of God, for example Hera’s shawl, the Shekhinah’s wings, the High Priestess’ veil. In the Wiccan tradition in which I came up, we’d call the stole one version of the schmatta, the “rag,” the magical fabric that may be altar cloth, mantle, tunic, or robe. It also has links to the tallit, the Jewish prayer shawl, and to the towel Jesus is said to have used to wash and dry the feet of his disciples. The stole is magical, transformative, and symbolic.

The Magical Helpers: The Right Hand of Fellowship and the Charges

Over the next phase of a UU ordination, there are several ritualists who offer words of wisdom. They welcome the newly ordained minister into the fellowship of UU ministers. One of them “charges” the minister with advice about how to conduct oneself as a minister. Another speaks to the congregation in light of the event of one of their number being called out from among them to serve. These are the Mystery People encountered along the way. They are ones whose words the newly ordained minister takes on with a new identity. They offer gifts of wisdom, gifts of words.

The Gathered Power: The Laying on of Hands

After all these gifts of individuals, the assembly is going to gather around the newly ordained. Before the whole assembly comes together—and they will all gather together—three ritualists come around me. One is Christian, one is Wiccan, and one is UU. They represent parts of my life, my belief, my multifaceted understanding of the mythic, the transformative, and the sacred. One notable moment in my particular ordination ceremony was when Jonathan, the Third-Degree priest of Stone Circle Wicca with whom I have worked for nearly twenty years, said to the congregation, “This is how we do it,” and dropped to his knees directly in front of me.

Wiccan blessing

There, before this group of people of many different religions, in the context of a UU ordination, after Rev. Susan Moore invoked the Holy Spirit, he offered me the Five-Fold Blessing. In a ringing voice—no microphone for this ritual action—he blessed me from my feet to my head in a ceremonial action rarely seen outside a Wiccan Circle. And then, after the Five-Fold Blessing, Rev. Carol Cissel tied the blessings together, called on my ancestors, called on those who have brought me to this place, ancestors of body and of spirit. And then she called the people gathered, my family of blood and spirit, the ministers and other religious professionals; she called all of those gathered who wanted to bless and offer energy to me and (more importantly to my ministry). Members of the assembly, representing the community at large, stand in layer after layer around me, many rows deep into the sanctuary. Colleague after colleague. Beloved after beloved. Some words were said, but mostly I remember the power, mostly I remember the love. I am being welcomed back.

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