The Elder Ceremony
In many traditions maturity and wisdom are celebrated as Elders mature into their wisdom. Our ancestors knew this. Most native peoples demonstrate their recognition of the Wisdom of Elders through their practices. In the Jewish practice they call this rite of passage for women, Jubilee.
Although there is no magic age in which we mature, our Gathering is blessed by the leadership and participation of many amazing elder women. Our Gathering has chosen 70 as the age of mature wisdom, yet if you ask each of these women I expect that they would agree that day by day they are still growing in Understanding. Each day if we pay attention we all can awaken more and more to the Divine Feminine expressing herself through us.
Once again, this year to honor the Face of the Divine Feminine, we have asked our Elders to choose a word to represent the wisdom of their spiritual consciousness at this time. We understand how limiting or powerful the choice of that one word can be & we recognize that fully awake and powerful women reserve the right to change their minds. Their wisdom and growth as represented by one or two words is a gift that we as younger, less experienced women can use to grow by. During this ceremony they will state their words of growth aloud to us.
Our Ceremony will begin with our current “Sitting Elders” seated in an inner Circle. The rest of us “Crones in Training” (CITs) will progress around the outside of their Circle, stopping at points that represent our feminine stages of life (babies, maidens, matrons, mothers). We will then be seated in an outer Circle behind the Elders. If we have new “Crones” to be “Croned” they will receive a crown & ceremonial purple shawl as they enter the inner Circle. They will each have an opportunity to speak of their past experiences & make a dedication as they speak of their intentions for the future.
If you are under the age of 70, we ask you to gather outside the Chapel before the ceremony as the Elders are seated. You will then be led into the ceremony as part of the ritual.
The intention of this ceremony is to honor and celebrate our amazing Elders of our 2024 Gathering.
The Elder Ceremony, or Croning Ceremony, is a sacred part of every Grandmother Gathering. It's a time to honor the Elder Women among us, who are recognized for their wisdom, spirituality, intuition, and creativity, as we create a space for the younger women to honor their own awakening of power. Women who have reached 70 years of age and older...the Crones...are celebrated for their gained wisdom, for adapting consciously and gracefully to the process of aging, comfortable with their spiritual self, their intuition, and their creative power.
Many ancient traditions speak to three aspects of a woman’s life, also known as the Triple Goddess, being the Maiden—the innocent child or youthful woman, the Mother—the nurturer, and the Crone—the wise old woman and healer. Reaching the Crone stage of life is a time for celebration! How wonderful it is to be around such wise women who lead the charge in living empowered, heart-centered lives!
