Es Schpottyaahrsgleichgwicht

 

The Apples of Idunn

All hail the Apple


Perennial fruit of health!


That which keeps the doctor away.


Medium of tests,


Such as the shaking of Holle´s tree.


Medium of schemes,


Such as the poisoned ones of tales.


This Apple


Is a mighty fruit!


Often not given its due


In this modern age


Of widespread transport


Bringing fruit from all places


To a store near each of us.


Yet the Apple holds a higher place


As the Guardian of the Gods


Keeping Age and Death at bay


And thwarting even Time.


Who is worthy to carry them,


These incarnations of Life Force?


It is the graceful Idunn,


Goddess of Rejuvenation,


Who bears the miraculous fruit.


Science has proven


What the ancients knew from experience.


That which Idunn brings


Bestows health and wellness


Upon those who partake of it.


So hail to the Apple,


Hail to the Great Goddess Idunn!


Hail also to the community


That She sustains! 

--  Robert L. Schreiwer, 2019

Es Erntfescht

The "Yankee" Thanksgiving was originally widely rejected by the Deitsch, since we have our own observances of thanksgiving that fall around the autumn equinox. Erntfescht (Urglaawe use), Erntedankfescht, and Harvest Home are expressions of these observances, which are rooted in ancient practices and sustained into the current era.

This weekend, Urglaawe communities will conduct in their annual food drives, seed and crop swaps, and celebrations of the bounty of this wonderful land.

Of course, this does not negate the celebration of Thanksgiving in November; having two observances of gratefulness is a wonderful thing. It is, however, culturally and physically relevant to our location on the globe to keep our traditions alive. :)

Given the state of the environment these days, we cannot overstate how important the gratitude for the harvest is. Erntfescht features seed swaps, meaning that you bring seeds from your gardens or from your favorite foods that others can take to begin to grow the same plants in their gardens; you may take what interests you. Those of us who have gardens can bring what we grow for others to partake of. The altar features our harvested plants, so bring some with you, if you grow any. We also collect food for local pantries at this time, but only give if you are able and to the point at which you are able; no one is keeping track of donors. This is about community, community helping community, and us reaching outside of our closest circle to help to strengthen the wider community.

Hail to the Harvest! 

Halliches Erntfescht

(or Erntdankfescht!)

The autumn equinox and surrounding days served as the time of the original Deitsch (and German, for that matter) Thanksgiving. We Urglaawer observe the equinox and celebrate the harvest as a community as close to the equinox as possible. The Schwenkfelders observe the thanksgiving on September 24, other localities hold it on different days, also often based on the equinox.

In Heathen times, communities pitched in to help to finish harvests, to trade different crops, and to tend to kin and neighbor so that everyone had a variety of foods to store for the winter. This is the root of the Harvest Home tradition, which continues in many churches today.

The establishment of a national Thanksgiving holiday was actually met with some resistance in Deitsch communities because we already had a thanksgiving observance that was placed at the time of the completion of the harvest. The end of November seemed to be an odd time to many people. The traditional harvests were well over by then, it was typically very cold, and, prior to the rise of modern transportation and grocery, people would be more likely conserving their food stores, outside of game, to ensure a supply to carry them through if Spring came late.

The Harvest Home church traditions nowadays take place all throughout September, but they are a legacy of the thanksgiving festival. Urglaawe groups hold thanksgiving festivals as close to the equinox as possible. All of these observances focus on spreading the wealth of the harvest around, most typically in the form of canned food donations to food shelters.

Over time, the national holiday in November has meshed well with traditional Pennsylvania Dutch foods and has become part of our lives. However, it is good to keep our cultural traditions alive, too.

Most of us who were born after World War II are so accustomed to supermarkets having everything we could want all throughout the year that it is difficult to fathom the reliance on root cellars, springhouses, and cooperative efforts among neighbors. Jump back a few generations, when most food was grown locally, and it becomes easier to see why there would be a formal expression of gratitude for a successful harvest. We can capture a bit of the experience of our forebears by appreciating events like the end of the harvest.

Besides, it never hurts to have another day where we are a little more deliberate in our gratitude for the food that nourishes us. So, sometime this week, you may want to incorporate an extra expression of gratitude in the religious or philosophical context that resonates with you to the plants and the animals that feed us, to the farmers who produce the food, and to the transportation and outlets that make it available to us.

Let's make Erntfescht/Erntdankfescht a thing again in our communities!

Erntfescht

The next major observance on the Urglaawe calendar is Erntfescht (Harvest Festival or Harvest Home in English), which is associated also with the Autumn Equinox.

Erntfescht, also called Erntdankfescht, is the original Deitsch (Pennsylvania Dutch or Pennsylvania German) day of thanksgiving. It is an age-old Germanic celebration of the harvest. 

Families and/or communities would come together to ensure that their loved ones and neighbors had ample food to carry them through the winter. The community took care of its own, which is a concept that is all too seldom practiced these days. Also, this event helped farmers specialize. One farmer may be particularly adept at working with wheat while another may have the perfect soil for growing broccoli. At this time, they would swap their specialized crop for items that were others' specialties.

One important element to note was that the provision of ample food for loved ones was a community effort, but we're not talking about people taking from others in an abusive manner. Folks were expected to be self-reliant when possible. However, there were many circumstances that left a family or part of the community vulnerable: the occasional crop failure; an illness; the advanced age of a person who gave to the community for many years, etc.

Within a community of participation by volition, there is no shame in taking when needed while giving when possible. The generosity of the local community helps to build frith and expand grith. In many ways, this an organic expression of the concepts of welfare and Social Security, which are tainted by their compulsory aspects, mismanagement, and the allowance of widespread abuses by people who cheat the system.

In its organic state, though, this is a beautiful expression of community and tribe. The concept of a harvest home comes from the pre-conversion era in Europe and continued to the present era.

Distelfink Sippschaft observes the harvest and the autumn equinox through food drives, seed swaps, and food exchanges. We also conduct a food drive at this time of year, and we encourage others to do the same to the best of their ability.

Typically honored on this day are Dunner (Thor), Siwwa (Sif), Idunna, and, increasingly, the Matronae.

Dunner, seen in thunder, lightning, and heavy rain, is also identified with crops, particularly as He wards the farmlands and the cattle. Siwwa (name backformed; unknown in Deitsch lore), Dunner's consort or wife, is said in Norse lore to have golden hair, which we may see reflected in the fields of wheat and grain that are so abundant at this time of the year. Lightning helps in the process of atmospheric nitrogen fixation, and the nitrogen oxides are dissolved into rain and brought to the earth as nitrates, which helps to make the soil more fertile. Here we can see Dunner's relationship to Siwwa, and Siwwa brings forth the grain crops that nourish us (and the cattle!). Thus, Urglaawe views Siwwa as a gentle goddess of nutrition and strength.

Tying in with the other deities at this time of year is the goddess Idunna or Idunn (also unknown by name in our lore, though some apple lore does play into our stories). Idunna is the keeper of the apples (usually seen as golden apples) that empower our deities. Without these apples, our deities begin to wither and age. Scandinavian lore (Skáldskaparmál) provides us with a story of how important these apples were to the deities. Apples, of course, are high in antioxidants, which can indeed help slow signs of aging. Add to it that most apples can be stored throughout the winter without rotting, and we can see how our ancestors viewed the importance of the fruit in their presence. As the apple harvest time sets in, we celebrate the deities' harvest of their important staple.

As we enter the latter portion of summer, and while we reap the rewards of our hard work and celebrate the gifts we have before us, let us also prepare for the coming winter. Let us look back over the year and see how far we have come with any resolutions or plans for the year. Let us ensure that our loved ones are secure and safe. Today we hail the deities, the wights, and certainly our ancestors, and we thank them for our successes and for seeing to our future.

Upcoming Observances and New Facebook Groups

This coming weekend (20.-21. Scheiding or September 20-21) marks the Erntfescht, also called the Harvest Festival or Harvest Home, in English. Distelfink's observance will include a food drive to benefit the Mazzoni Center Food Bank in Philadelphia, PA.

September 28 is Zisasege, or the feast or blessing of the goddess Zisa. 

Also, the Urglaawe community has created two new Facebook groups oriented to the practice of Braucherei and Hexerei in the Urglaawe context. They are as follows:

Urglaawischi Blanzeheilkunscht Freindschaft - Urglaawe Herbalism Guild

Urglaawe Fiber Arts Guild - Urglaawischi Fasserkunscht Freindschaft

Thank you!

Hollerbeer Haven 19 - Summer 2013

The .PDF version of Hollerbeer Haven 19 - Summer 2013 is now available on Urglaawe.com.

This issue includes a recap of Philadelphia Pagan Pride Day and a discussion of the Urglaawe Harvest festivals of Midsummer, Hoietfescht, and Erntfescht.

Dankfescht and Erntfescht

Happy Dankfescht!

For Urglaawer (and for many others in the Deitscherei) this is the second observance of giving thanks. The first falls around the autumn equinox in the form of the Harvest Home or Erntfescht. At that time, folks offered up portions of their harvest to the deities (or deity of choice) and helped to ensure that their neighbors are cared for. In more modern terms, we now conduct food drives and donate canned goods to the shelters, etc.

Erntfescht is a traditional observance within Deitsch culture. The American Thanksgiving is significantly later than the end of the major harvests. By this time of the year, our ancestors were trying to store as much as they could and were culling herds to conserve resources. Granted, the origins of Thanksgiving are in one specific story of the Pilgrims and the Patuxet Wampanoag, which has now become codified as a federal holiday. Thus, the holiday falls where it falls.

Since it never hurts to give thanks to the gods, goddesses, land wights, and each other for all the blessings that we have in our lives, we'll grab a turkey drumstick, tip our hats to Tisquantum and his compatriots, and enjoy ourselves today. We wish all of our friends and colleagues the same joy of life!

Heel zu de Ziewe!