COTH Yule 2011
by Blayze

Altar is decorated with red and green - winter greenery of holly and ivy. A basket of candles sits next to the altar.

Laid out around the centre of the circle is a spiral of candles - unlit. At the centre of the spiral is a small cauldron containing a large unlit candle decorated with holly.

This ritual relies on rthymn and musical cues for the evocation of mood and trance, each movement / action is deliberately made to the music. 

Music: 
•	The Holly And The Ivy (Vocal and string arrangement to the tune of Searching For Lambs) 
by Sedayne 
•	A Fire For You - Winter Solstice (Instrumental) by John Boswell
•	Searching For Lambs - (Album: The Seven Swords Of Wayland) by Jerry Marchand
•	Holly And Ivy (Sedayne - arrangement and additional lyrics Gabby Cleary and Andrew Daws)

Circle is cast silently by HPS as the The Holly And The Ivy (Sedayne) plays

HPS: Beyond the veil of the blackest night, the first spark of returning light waits, waits to bring the hope of warmth to the Land.
The sharp green points of the holly glow in the firelight. The scent of pine fills the air. The oak is bare branched and the ivy encircles the sacred glade.
For it is Yule. The Winter Solstice. The Longest night when we gather together in the dark and the cold to await the return of the light.
HPS lights a candle (taper) from the God candle upon the altar.

Music starts: A Fire For You / Searching For Lambs

HPS picks up greenery from a basket by the altar and slowly begins to walk the spiral. When she gets to the centre she invokes:

HPS: Queen of the Moon, Queen of the Sun... (down to hope upon the land)

When she gets to the centre she adds some greenery to the cauldron and then lights the central candle with the taper.

As she walks the spiral back to the altar, she lights one of the small candles that make up the spiral.

She puts out the taper and returns it to the altar. The next person then takes up a gift of greenery and a candle from the basket. They journey down the spiral (to the music) and gives their gift of greenery to the cauldron. They light their candle and walk out of the spiral, pausing to light one of the spiral candles on their way.

This continues until everyone has journeyed the spiral. The last person through lights all of the remaining candles.

HPS: Illumine the World, Illumine the Land...

HPS (sings) 

The bare white branch of winter
transformed unto bone
No leaf of green rimed with frost,
against the sky doth glow.

But there doth gleam the holly leaf
it shines against the grey
His berries bright, of jewel and blood
Greet the solstice day.

O whither runs the antlered stag
Upon these fields of snow?
Whither now the gentle wren
When icy gale doth blow?

...Still deep within the frozen earth
Sleeps still the secret seed
That once more will blossom forth
When from winter's grip tis freed

The holly and the ivy
Now they both full grown
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown.

The rising of the winter sun,
The running of the deer
The holy seed of the mistletoe
In the dawning of the year

HPS opens circle and all take their candles and light all of the candles placed around the house and the lanterns that are outside.

Feast.

Cakes and Ale

Close circle.