CORU RESPONSE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
As everyone is well aware by now, the world has crossed a great threshold in which a tiny entity, a virus, has thrown everything into chaos and put the brakes on business as usual. These are incredibly challenging times, and the future holds many opportunities and dangers we can only guess at currently. According to some of the leading experts in public health, the time frame for dealing with COVID-19 and the extreme measures most of us are undergoing to prevent its spread could be as long as 18 months. This will have a significant impact on our communities, both economically as well as mentally and spiritually, not to mention physically for those who fall ill.
As a priesthood we the Coru Cathubodua are committed to supporting our community in the ways that we can through this time. We have developed some new online tools that we are ready to roll out as ways for people to connect with us online, and as a means to continue to delve into Irish and Celtic Polytheism in a community context.
We have started a new Discord server, “Coru Hillfort,” that is available to anyone to log on and participate in our on-going discussions. There will also be specific places for support, both from the community and for more specific pastoral support if it’s needed. The invite is here: https://discordapp.com/invite/DhFMHcm
We will soon be hosting a series of Zoom video conference meetings focused around 3 different themes. The times and details for all Zoom meetings will be posted on our website, in Discord, and on our Facebook page.
Once a month we will host an online devotional where we will offer prayers and give offerings to the gods of our tradition. Attendees will be invited to participate in their own home if they so choose.
In place of our popular monthly in-person pubmoot, we will be hosting a virtual “pubmoot”. This will be an informal time to connect via Zoom and cultivate kinship in a non-structured space. Bring your own drinks and dinner!
The third kind of online meet-up we will be hosting is a “courage chat” twice a month where we will pull readings that inspire us from the lore, and we’ll facilitate a focused discussion around that theme.
Our schedule for online events is as follows, please see individual event pages for zoom link information:
Tues 4/7 Pub Moot 7 pm
Mon 4/13 Courage Chat 7 pm
Sun 4/26 Devotional 10 am
Sun 5/10 Courage Chat 10 am
Tues 5/19 Pub Moot 7 pm
Mon 6/1 Courage Chat 7 pm
Sun 6/14 Devotional 10 am
Sun 6/28 Courage Chat 10 am
Additionally, we are also developing “office hours” where respective members of our priesthood can be available for pastoral counselling for anyone struggling through this time with issues of a spiritual nature. Examples of this might include things such as interpreting messages you may be receiving from the gods or spirits, grappling with challenges they may have put before you, or refining your personal practice. We should emphasize that we are not licensed psychologists or social workers, and so issues of a mental health or social wellbeing nature will be referred out. We are developing a list of referral services and individuals who are trained in these matters that people can access, and this will be posted in our various forums as well.
As many may know, we were in the midst of our annual fundraiser when it started becoming apparent that this was turning into a pandemic. We have put a hold on broadcasting our fundraising efforts, and have extended it to the maximum time that Indiegogo allows, which for us is May 1. We will likely resume promotion of the fundraiser after the initial 3 weeks of quarantine has ended. If you would like to contribute, the link is here: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/coru-priesthood-2020-annual-fundraiser#/
Together we will weather this storm!
Sith co nem
Nem co doman
Doman fo ním
Nert hi cach
Peace to the heavens
Heaven to the earth
Earth under heaven
Strength in each
(excerpt from the Morrígan’s Peace Prophecy)
