One of my favorite things to do as a priestess, is give the gift of a God/dess blessing to a child. Most often, they are still in the womb, and the parents come from diverse religious backgrounds, or no religious background at all. These are not always happy occasions, as sometimes they come on the eve of medical complication, or some other circumstance wrought with pain and worry. As legal clergy, I have the ability to enter hospitals and deliver last rites, as well as bestow Right of Religious Preference during happy occasions, like giving birth.
Last week, I received a phone call from two very overwhelmed and scared parents-to-be. They happen to be very dear friends, and the father is a practicing Pagan, while the mother is a practicing Christian Scientist. She was due to give birth to a baby boy in mid-September, but contrary to all their planning, the baby had to born under emergency circumstances, due to a condition called Preeclampsia, detected early enough to save the mother's life.
If you've seen the Downton Abbey episode where Sybil gives birth, you are correct in the assumption that the situation was very serious. No one knows why it happens, but it can cause convulsions and seizures, as well as death in the mother-to-be. The babies born under these conditions are often healthy and bear no ill effects. The only cure for Preeclampsia/Eclampsia is birth, and this must happen as soon as the condition is discovered in order to save both mother and child.
I was requested to come to the Hospital and reach out to Isis and Horus for healing, and a safe delivery for their pre-mature baby boy as well as preserving the life of his mother. No one wanted to be placed in the terrible position of having to chose between two very important, very treasured lives. I reached out to every community I knew that had prayer circles to add to the energy of the attunement I was to provide later that evening, and set about gathering offering supplies, along with odds and ends for the mother which she may not have realized she needed.
As I drove for an hour to the hospital, I tuned in to the divine energies of Isis (healing and motherly instinct/care/love), Osiris (for sustaining the father's strength in the face of adversity and overcoming obstacles), Horus (the child energy of progeny from Isis and Osiris, and Wadjet (protector of Pharaoh/Horus, she who opens the way). Bast was called upon to keep a clear line defined between our world and the underworld, guarding the passage between light and dark...but who should come through, big and powerful, unanticipated and much needed? Tawaret, the great hippopotamus goddess that protects women in childbirth.
As I drove and prayed, invoking the energy of each god/dess to use my body as a vessel for their healing energy and blessings, I felt her listening intently, waiting to be called by name, honored and invoked. Her energy was so big, it surprised me. I was reminded that last October, at Convocation where she was honored, I made an offering to her for the blessing of a child between these two very same parents...that they should conceive, and they did. This baby would be protected by Tawaret, and so would his mother. It was important to acknowledge Tawaret. It was as if she said, "Fear not...this is what I do." I was much encouraged by her presence, and was excited with the knowledge that in Her doing, was all. She had a special interest in this family.
We do not always get a "sign" that our offerings are acknowledged or accepted by the divine. But they are always listening. It felt good to see the thread of that offering, and how it had grown from seedling to sapling, and final fruition. I am always in awe of these things. I am also reminded of how such a seemingly small thing as a proper ceremonial offering in our Universe, is a very grand and monumental thing in the Universe of the Divine.
When I arrived, the father was very anxious and worried, and the mother was distraught and overwhelmed. My job as their clergy (aside from obvious duties as a close friend), is to make them as comfortable as possible given the circumstances. I wondered where her support system was... her own mother and father, who lived 500 miles away, and her brother, who lives close by, was sick with a cold and could not be around a newborn. I asked, "Are your parents coming?" and she began to tell me a lot of reasons why they could not be there, all summing up what a very caring person who is always putting others before herself would say. I said, "It sounds like they are waiting for your OK. Do you want your mother to be here?" And she replied very tearfully, "Yes." So we called her parents, and they booked flights to be there for her.
Once the nurse took her vitals and excused herself for an hour, we had an impromptu baby shower, with a short-but-sweet Blessing of the Way ceremony. I had brought flowers, summer yellow cherries, and chocolate for offerings to the God/desses we would be appealing to, and a particular color for Tawaret in specific honor to her presence. After calling in the directions, I invoked each God/dess from her Hospital bed, and each of us made offerings to each one, placing the flowers in a water dish with the food. At the very same time and from afar, the Isian community of High Priestesses and Arch Priestesses lit candles, said prayers, and tuned in to the powerful energy that is a prayer for health and life, new and old, big and small of spirit. I placed my hands on the Mother's belly, amidst all the contraptions monitoring the child, and let the energy flow from my hands, through her, and into him. Isis, Horus, and Tawaret came through very strong. They would care for them, and their precious spirits.
When it was done, the nurse came again to check the mother's vitals, and commented that her very high blood pressure had decreased dramatically down into the normal range. The mother commented that she felt calm and peaceful, and well-cared for. We went over decisions she may have to make to preserve both of their lives, and I witnessed her Advanced Directive and Power of Attorney forms. And when I left them, they felt happy and able to cope with what was to come the next day. It was a difficult labor, but mother and child came through it just fine. The baby was born healthy, and concerns that he would not breath on his own were abated when he did, as his lungs were much farther along than all the doctors thought. The photo of him just after birth reminded me of the Sun card in the tarot; a fitting suggestion of what he was born into, and would be blessed with beginning his life in this way.
As a priestess, I feel a special responsibility to this child, as I had a small but important hand in ushering him into this world. Seeing how the Gods have blessed him, from conception to birth, is an amazing path for a little soul to be on, and I have no doubt he will be an amazing edition to our world. He is special, and beloved of the Gods.
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