Sacraments
Through the sacraments we experience our full human dignity. Our sacraments are meant to be a means of inclusion, not a barrier to co-union. As an interfaith abbey we accept and honor the diversity of sacraments that our people participate in. Not every sacrament is intended for every person, and that is as it should be. Being interfaith does not mean that we hollow out our individual faith traditions and carefully avoid using language internal to a particular religion so that we are left with vague amorphous statements that everyone can agree upon but offer little meaning and no inspiration. Such a condition would extract us from the rich tapestry of the human experience of God woven across thousands of years and cultures. Sacraments are encounters with the divine along our peregrine way – encounters that ignite us, focus our minds, make clear the path, and mark us as transformed.
At Earthfire Abbey we celebrate and participate, as we are called through our beliefs, in the following sacraments:
Baptism
, or spiritual purification through ritual immersion in living waters, is a sacred practice in a variety of faith traditions including Christianity, Judaism, Indigenous Religions, Hinduism, and some Pagan traditions. The meaning depends upon the faith tradition. At the Abbey we celebrate and offer Christian baptism, as well as Earth centered ceremonial immersion. Immersion in sacred waters serves as a gateway into a new life, a rebirth, and marks us as new creatures on an intentional path.
Reconciliation
is a sacrament both abbesses offer as a means of reconciling our thoughts and actions with our ethics and spiritual commitments. There are times when, despite our intentions, we fail in our commitment to be morally serious people. Reconciliation is a method of clarification, and a means of re-tuning the soul.
Marriage
celebrations are welcome and blessed at the abbey, and both abbesses are available to serve as officiants after appropriate counseling and discernment. Marriage is a vocation that at its best strengthens the love and commitment of all who participate through both a public declaration and the personal dedication of exchanged vows. We affirm all those who seek to celebrate their love and share their lives and are glad to celebrate with those who do.
Keeping Watch
With The Dying
is the sacred act of being fully present with a soul as they transition, and with the body that held that soul as it prepares to go back to the earth. Keeping watch is also the sacrament of holding space for the loved ones of that transitioning soul and ensuring that the process of death is a holy and holistic process honoring the wishes of all concerned.
Feeding The Hungry
another Work of Mercy, is also a sacrament at the heart of the community of this Abbey. Feeding each other is sacred, it matters who we share a meal with, and it is essential that to the extent that we are able, we answer the cry of hunger with food.
The Sacrament of Ashes
is a ritual of mourning, it is an embodied enactment of memory that reminds us that we are earth and that it is to this earth we belong. We celebrate the sacrament of ashes yearly on Ash Wednesday, and as requested throughout the year.
Eucharist
is celebrated and shared amongst Christians at the Abbey who believe that upon consecration the eucharist is the real presence of the body and blood of Jesus.
Tending the Sick
is a sacrament of peace and healing. We are called to care for those who suffer, to pray for their wellbeing, to offer presence, attention and succor. We tend to the sick and injured with the hope of physical healing while recognizing that the primary effect is often that of spiritual healing and internal peace.
Holy Orders
are how some of us live our authentic life of service, transformation, illumination, and wonder. After a period of contemplation and discernment, individuals may be called to take vows. We honor such vocations and proceed as is appropriate for the Abbey and the faith of the person called to our way of life.
Burial Of The Dead
as one of the Works of Mercy is also celebrated as a sacrament at the Abbey. In time, the Abbey will be prepared to offer green burial as a final ritual for those who desire their body to return to the earth on Abbey grounds.
Naming Ceremonies
are sacramental as the calling of a name is a way of knowing and of being known. It is a holy celebration to name a child, and it is also a holy celebration to name ourselves when we have learned who we are better than those who first knew us and chose a name for us.
Individual Rites Of Passage
become clear to us as being necessary at different points along our journey. Our ancestors knew that initiation was an essential part of becoming fully human and accurately known by our community. These sacraments will be discussed, discerned, and celebrated for those seeking initiation by the whole community.
A sacrament is a visible and imperfect human sign of an invisible and perfect divine-human reality.
The Blessed Christian de Chergé