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Possible
Group Meeting Topics |
So what should you do for meetings? It all depends on who makes up your group. If your group consists mostly of people who are *interested* in Paganism, but come mostly to learn Tarot, you'll probably spend more time on New Age practices. If your group is mainly practicing Pagans, you may be able to fit in more ritualistic meetings. The problem with a bunch of practitioners is that you all will probably want to have things *YOUR* way. Instead, try having one meeting to learn different styles of casting circles or practicing magick. That way each person can lead a discussion and you won't have to sit through the same windbag droning on at every meeting. (I'm the windbag at our meetings, so take no offense! *g*)
An adult member of a large St. Louis group (which shall remain nameless at this time) gave me some suggestions for my group. Unfortunately, most of her suggestions *can't* see the light because of various glitches in the system at my school. I'm giving my reasons why they won't work for us, but please don't look at these "excuses" as a cop-out. I would love to try a lot of these so for now we modify. However, if these work for you, definitely try them!
Try working at a soup kitchen for a weekend. If you have problems with a particular, say, Christian group, how can they argue when you're out there getting your hands dirty to help others? Since when is helping others "Satanic"? (Out of all ten of the active members in my group, we only have one member with a car, and it is completely unreliable. Transportation is out so we can't do this one. We donate canned goods and clothing, though.)
Cast a circle at each meeting and try different ways for the ritual. Have different people research a new method and lead it. (Our group is too diverse with only two practicing members. Most of the others are kind of timid at practicing now, so we save circles for holidays. I'm also kind of wary of this suggestion because it's one thing to cast the circle, but magick is a fickle thing and can easily get out of control for a group of people who are not conditioned yet.)
Plant trees, bushes, etc. for a beautification project. (I like this one, but I don't think our chancellor would be too happy if we went over the authority of Top Care Landscaping (TM) and planted trees wherever we pleased, even if it's for a good cause. We also have no budget at the moment, so any and all purchased goods are presently coming from my wallet, which is tough as I have no job at this moment. A suitemate and I have planted an indoor magickal garden though, on our suite balcony.)
If you'd like to just sit around and work inside, here are a few topics to get you started:
Tarot Workshop: These are ALWAYS meetings that bring in members!
Holidays: Discuss why and how the holiday is celebrated. Prepare a ritual as a group and perform it on the holiday. Use the holiday as a way to educate the public about Paganism.
Meditation: This is especially good around exams! Use group money, if you can, to purchase a meditation tape and have a led meditation to relax and focus for exams.
Magickal/Religious Systems: Have people research different systems and hold each meeting on a particular system. Try anything and everything including Wicca, Druidry, Odinism, Discordianism, Shamanism, Buddhism (though most won't technicaly call it Pagan, there's a lot that Paganism has in common with Buddhism and other Eastern modes of thought), Enochian Magick, and Kitchen Witchcraft.
Pagan Crafts: We're planning on doing some candle dipping and making other kinds of crafts. We hope to make dream catchers, magickal besoms (brooms), wands or a group wand (into which everyone will put some of their own energy and artistic touch), and maybe even our own incense.
"Open Mic Night": Have people bring in their own poetry, stories, music, etc. to share with the group. You can even get into a "build a story" in which everyone adds a sentence to create a Pagan-themed story. Chances are it'll be better than a lot of the "Pagans fall in love, go to a Pagan gathering to be met at the door by fundamentalist insignificant others, enjoy time at gathering despite the protest, assure themselves they've fallen in love, live happily-ever-after" stories out there.
Personal Thoughts and Theories: Spend a meeting sharing with each other what you think being Pagan means to you, your personal theories on religion and the way of the world, etc. This is a good group bonding experience.
These are just a few to get you started. You can piggyback off of these ideas and design your group's meeting plans to fit your own group's style. If you have any other suggestions, be sure to let me know! My group is always looking for new ideas as well! :)
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WICCA INFORMATION
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Beginning a student group? You may find some help in these books:
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