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As an astrologer, a major factor I consider when planning spellwork is the position of the planets. This month, we are not just under the influence of five retrograde planets, but also that of Mars, the god of war and action. As he spends the next five months in his home sign of Aries, themes and events of conflict and tension will become increasingly apparent in our day-to-day lives.

While this transit can be tense, we can take comfort in the fact that we are spiritual workers. This clarion call can serve as preparation so that we’re able to best smooth rocky situations, working to instill tranquility where needed. Below is a short but handy guide to help you do just that, especially if your spirit requires some relief from the heat.

Some go-to products for inviting peace:

• Tranquility oil: for imparting a sense of calm to people and situations
• Van Van oil: to improve a situation or change it for the better
• Cascarilla/Eggshell powder: useful for personal protection when dealing with other people’s energies
• Balm of Gilead: smooths relationships; fosters peace and understanding
• Lavender: to calm and cool someone’s spirit
• Clove buds: great for burning away animosity and discord

Tranquility Herbal Wash Formula

Use this formula as a weekly wash to keep peace at home and flare-ups to a minimum. This can also be employed as a bath!

On a Friday morning, boil equal parts Lemon Verbena, Lavender, Balm of Gilead and White Rose Petals (if available). Add a few drops of Tranquility oil and pour some of the herb water into a spray bottle.

Mop your home from the back to the front with the mixture, spraying where possible in those hard to mop areas, such as delicate carpets, cabinets and upholstery. Once done, burn some Vervain on charcoal, allowing the smoke to fill your home. 

Once fully suffumigated, open all the windows and doors to allow any tension to waft out. To invite harmony and prosperity into the home, sprinkle a combination of Kosher salt, Balm of Gilead, and Pennyroyal at your front door, sweeping it in and throughout your home. This will help to keep things tranquil as well as protect the positive energy you’ve created in your abode. 

Wishing you a productive and peaceful September!

 This spell is to aid and assist you in making someone (your intended target) look at what they have created, look at others, or look to themselves. It is a way to channel your energy to a focal point in order for you to “put your thumb on them” and make them realize the harm they are creating. This will “surround” them with words, accusations, and the truth of the matter.

Items needed:

• 4 12-inch square mirror tiles (get at Lowes or Home Depot)
• 1 White 7-day “novena” type vigil candle in glass
• 5 Photos or images of the face of the intended target
• Petition in your own words
• Food Coloring or Ink pad
• Duct Tape
• Dry Erase marker (like the ones used on whiteboards in classrooms)
• Lemon Juice or Florida Water

First, clean off candle your candle — outside, inside, the wax top, and wick — with lemon juice or Florida Water. Set aside to dry.

Take petition paper and write what you want to happen. For example: “Bobby Joe, I want you to see how you are dogging me out and always making time for everyone else in the world and leaving me for last.” 

Lay the four mirrors side-by-side on a long table to form a long mirror rectangle. You will be writing across the four mirrors as if writing on one long piece of paper. Starting on the far left, you will be writing across the top of each mirror (moving from far left to next right, then the next right after that, and then the far right) before going back to start the next line on the far left again. If you run out of things to say, you’ll repeat your sentences until all four mirrors are completely full.

Begin writing with the dry erase marker the words with which you want to surround your intended target. For example: “Bobby Joe, I want to you feel guilty about leaving me alone most nights to go out drinking with your friends…I want you to miss my company and realize you did me wrong…You need to see you have a drinking problem…I want you to see that your partying is getting in the way of our relationship…” etc.

Again, you will be writing left to right across the four mirrors, moving back to mirror one (far left) when you run out of room on mirror four (far right). Write small and repeat your sentences over and over again until all the mirrors are covered.

Flip mirrors over and tape with duct tape strips to each other. Make sure there is a wee gap between each mirror to give it the ability to bend into a 90 degree angle. When the taping together is done, you should be able to set it upright and make a “box.”

Now tape the intended target’s photos to your candle glass, one on each side, so the face is visible from all sides of the mirror box.

Take the fifth photo of the person and turn it over to write your intention on the back. It can say things like, “see yourself through my eyes with the behavior you have been showing me” etc.

Take your thumb and press it on the ink pad or dip it in a bit of food coloring. Put your thumbprint over the face of the 5th photo and, once dry, place the photo under the candle with your original petition.

Apply oil of Clarity, Clear Sight, King Solomon Wisdom, or other similarly suited spiritual oil to the top of the candle wax (inside glass) and rub counter-clockwise.

Light candle and let burn continuously or light for a while then snuff it out to re-use another time. If snuffing out, use brass or metal snuffer or place ceramic plate over top rim of candle and wait until extinguished. Never blow out your candle.

In times of disarray, strive to uphold peace and order. In times of darkness, be the one who lights the candle. Now more than ever, our communities and country need divine protection from injustice. Whether in exercising your rights through protest or uniting your heart in prayer from home, there are countless ways to fight for what’s right. Below is a working and some of my favorite conjure tips to help evoke and uphold the Spirit of Justice.

Some useful herbs & conjure products for community protection and justice include:

Law Keep Away sachet powder:  For warding off troublesome law enforcement, sprinkle in your car, shoes, and along your doorstep.

Run Devil Run oil:  Anoint yourself and your belongings to protect and keep malicious, ill-intentioned officers away.

Van Van oil:  As it can “flip” a situation, can be useful for reversing injustices. Useful for dressing community candles.

Althea root:  Sprinkle on justice works to bring help and aid to those in need.

Oregano, dried or fresh:  A powerful herbal ally known to repel law enforcement.

Tricks to Protect, Influence and Quell

A combination of railroad spikes, Indian head pennies, and a small pair of open scissors buried at the corners of your home or block will protect, look out, and cut trouble off from entering your home or neighborhood. 

Make a jar to silence racist, misleading, or divisive talk on social media:  Add Devil’s shoestrings, sulfur, and alum to a half-bottle of molasses. Print out pictures of the offenders and their words and add them to the jar. At least once a week, turn the bottle upside down and burn a black candle on it. Add new offenders to the bottle as needed. 

Barberry root, asafoetida and red brick dust can be employed as a powerful sprinkle to keep the law and trouble off your property. It can also be deployd on the front lines of protests for protection and to compel enforcers to keep their distance.

Evan’s Black Lives Matter Lamp for Concealment and Protection

You can start this lamp anytime, but Sundays are ideal. Start by writing a letter or petition to G-d/Source asking for the light of divine justice and protection to shine forth in your state or country. Burn it to ash and set it aside. Next, print a picture of your state, neighborhood or country and across the front, write out Psalm 91:1. Add the ashes from your petition to its center along with a small High John the Conqueror root, oregano, and agar agar. Wrap this packet up with red or purple thread and place it in the lamp base. Add lamp oil along with Solomon’s seal root, Devil’s shoestring, bay leaves and several drops of Law Keep Away, Protection and/or Van Van oils. The Solomon’s Seal root and bay leaves will offer clarity to the community as well as protection. Finalize the lamp by affixing a cross pendant to the base that you will dress daily with the previously mentioned oils. Pray the entirety of Psalm 91 over it weekly to burn a path to justice. 

Remain safe and well as you continue to fight for truth, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 

Summertime is here and normally families would be getting ready for summer fun. Beach Days, Barbeques and summer Holiday Gatherings with family and friends. Just as our country began the healing process of COVID-19, we were all hit with the tragedy of George Floyd, which set our Nation in flames. Bottom Line: People are tired of the Hate and it is imperative that we Invoke the Spirit of Love. 

The dictionary describes Love as an intense feeling of deep affection. This should be a trait that every human being, regardless of race, color or creed, possesses within their soul. It is imperative to understand and respect that ALL humans are created equal and should be treated as such. Our nation has turned upside down because it was built and has been driven by the opposite of Love for Far Too Long. 

If we want the people to be healed, we must stop sweeping under the rug and ignoring the wrongs of the past.  We must stop pretending that it is ok to inflict unnecessary harm and murder People of Color. We must stop justifying the horrible treatment of Men and Women of Color. We live in a multi-culture world.  We shape the world together. Even as all lives matter, it is important to acknowledge that racism is still prevalent in our country and It Must End. We the people Must Invoke the Spirit of Love and Respect for human life.

This Ritual works well on the night of the Full Moon during the hour of Venus.

Items Needed:

1 Black Vigil
1 White Vigil
1 Brown Vigil
1 Yellow Vigil
1 Multicolored (7 color) Vigil
White eggshell powder (Casciliara)
White Pepper

Clearing Negativity Incense Mix:
Hyssop
Rue
Mint
Lemon Balm
Agrimony

Love, Peace and Respect Healing Mix:
Grains of Paradise
Solomon Seal Root
Hibiscus
Lavender
Cloves

Instructions:

After you have cleansed yourself and your work area, draw a heart sigil with the white eggshell powder on your work surface. Retrace the heart with white pepper to protect your ritual. Place your solid color Vigils around the heart and your multicolored Vigil in the center. The solid colors represent each race. If you feel a need to add another color, do so. The multicolor represents ALL races. Dress the candles with a pinch of the powdered Love and Respect Healing Mix. All you need is a pinch. Light your Clearing Negativity Incense mix first, as you pray from your heart to remove the hatred that plagues the land. You can use the following prayer:

I come to you, Lord God the Creator of All, and ask that you remove all manner of Racism and Hatred from the land. Cast it back into the abyss and Free the minds and hearts of the people. No more hatred of Color, no more hatred of Gender, no more unbalanced Laws, no more Plots to Suppress the People. No More Racism!  By the Power of the God Our Creator, So Mote It Be! (say 3 times)

Next, light the 7-day vigils and say a prayer for Love, Peace, Healing and Respect.  You can use the following prayer:

I invoke the Spirit of Love, I invoke the Spirit of Peace, I invoke the Spirit of Healing, I invoke the Spirit of Respect. Let your Ashe spread across the Land and engulf the people. Touch the Minds, Touch the Hearts, Touch their Spirits. Mend the Human Race! God, we thank you for Peace, we thank you for Love, we thank you for Healing, we thank you for respect toward one another! Thank you for Positive Change! Amen.

Each day Repeat the Prayer for Love, Peace, Healing and Respect during the hour of Venus until the candles are completed. This can be repeated throughout the Summer once a month, starting on the Full Moon.

One of the cards repeatedly appearing in clients’ readings lately is the Ancestros, or ancestors’ card. Many are facing tragedy delivered by this pandemic. Some of us will know someone who has lost a dear one to coronavirus. Unimaginable is the suffering of families who cannot say final goodbyes or pay respects to family and beloved community members. These newly departed souls cannot be at rest until their final remains are properly honored. Until then, their souls wander aimlessly, searching for understanding and direction. This year, many may encounter disembodied spirits once cities open up for the living again.  We will discuss practices for that in future newsletters.

When the Ancestros comes up in a reading, you are receiving the proverbial “cosmic phone call/knock at the door” to come visit and chat awhile.  Your ancestors want to communicate with you. Depending on the placement in the card spread, it may be that they have been “knockin'” for some time and you haven’t heard or responded, or you need to go visit them. Working with your ancestors is often your best line of defense, to protect you and the family.

Ancestor work is a large part of any indigenous spiritual practice or religion. The “old ways” knew that the future stood on the shoulders of the ancient ones. Time spent with Elders was essential. “Eggun before Orishas,” my Godmother always said. It took me a long time to realize and accept this, as I had developed a difficult outlook regarding one of my parents. As children, we rarely know the whole story nor understand the circumstances or actions of family members. Time and wisdom, experience and lessons change that perspective.

If family trauma is in your history, once you resolve any hurt that your parents’ actions (when alive) caused you, you can begin working with them in a peaceful, loving way. The simplest altar is a white doily on a table or chest of drawers, in a quiet part of the house. Ancestors’ spirits do not do well in a high traffic, busy area. Avoid your bedroom, as you may not rest well with their energy in your private space. It is best to keep this and all altars out of the bedroom.

Once you establish your altar, add a glass of water. Use a glass you won’t drink from again. That odd wine glass in the cabinet is ideal, or go to the dollar store for a stemmed glass to dedicate to your ancestors alone. They will appreciate it. Fill the glass with cool water and place in center of table. This simple ancestor altar is effective for those on a budget or limited space. You may add a white candle, whether a 7-day “novena” vigil candle in glass, or a tealight. All light is appreciated, to illuminate their rise through the seven layers of Heaven.

Each morning, rise early to greet your ancestors. Take the glass of water from the day before and pour into the grass or a planter outside (where you will not walk over it) and refill the glass. Some change water once a week, usually on Sundays; choose what fits your schedule. After placing the glass of fresh water on the table, greet your ancestors on each side of the family tree by name, listing them one by one, and follow with a request for insight, blessing, and protection. 

Here is an example for you to create your greeting:

I greet my ancestors, both known and unknown,

Father’s name
Mother’s name
Grandmother on mother’s side
Grandfather on mother’s side
Grandmother on father’s side
Grandfather on father’s side
Brother’s name
Sister’s name

and all my relatives of both sides of the family, known and unknown,

I offer you this glass of cool water to refresh you on your journey and ask for your blessings, protection, love, and knowledge as I, your daughter and granddaughter, make my way.

(If offering a candle as well, say “I offer this light so that the energy of the flame will illuminate your progress in spirituality.”)

I thank you in advance for the love and care you have shown me and continue to show me, as I go about my day.

Thank you.

This list should include brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, children — any blood relatives.

Your ancestor work might also include a bud vase with a white flower, usually a carnation or a rose. White symbolizes peace and sanctity, and the flower will absorb any negativity in the home. You may also get a shot glass or tiny aperitif glass and offer rum, whisky, or any other alcohol your ancestors enjoyed. You might also include an unlit cigar, or an opened pack of favorite cigarettes.

A grand demonstration of devotion to your Ancestors might be a full tabletop or top of dresser or hutch. It might include a glass for each relative, framed photos (*see below), candles for each, flowers on both back corners of the table, a Bible, a crucifix, incense, candy, perfume bottles, mints or gum, foods, special dishes (like a tea cup or saucer/plate) for each ancestor, liquor, chocolates, cakes, etc. Some serve cups of coffee (black) before taking their own first cup. On birthdays, celebrations and holidays, some set a plate (**see below) from the dining table with a spoonful of each item on it. Some place whole birthday cakes on their altar for all to enjoy. Just make sure the cake YOU eat is from another cake, as once you dedicate a whole cake to the ancestors, it is not a good practice to take a slice of their cake. It is OK, however, to offer one slice from your cake to the ancestors, and leave the remaining cake for the living.

You will find that once you begin a ritual to connect with your ancestors, they will send you messages, like dreams you remember, a “whisper” in your ear, a clear vision of a future event in your mind’s eye, or movement on their altar. Sometimes ancestors visit and move an item, tip over or crack a glass, spill drinks and “nibble” the offerings. They are enjoying the feast you have given them. You will find over time that they are smoothing your path and removing blockages for you so that you can serve as a respectable representative of their legacy. When you achieve something you have asked for their help with, always give a bit more in offerings, such as having a Mass said for them, more candles, or a big potluck for the family to gather around and do a communal prayer service for them. Your ancestros will appreciate it.

* When using photos, make sure there are no living people in the photo. It must be a photo of your deceased relative only. 

** Make sure all plates, cups, and bowls have a crack or chip in them, or are plates that you will NEVER use for feeding someone who is still alive.

 

Long days, warm days, play days…

Known as Summer Solstice, Litha, Midsummer, it is a time of ripening, blessing, and welcoming the day as it banishes the night. The calendar date for the Northern Hemisphere is June 20/21 and for the Southern Hemisphere December 20/21.

A time of communal gathering of 3 days for celebration takes place, featuring dancing in the woods with religious ecstasy. It is a time to bring all tribes/communities together, a return to “home,” family and kin. The message is of bonding, endurance and triumphant fulfillment.

It is said that at daybreak the sun casts 3 rays of light to the world. In return, one greets the sun and affirms goodness, truth, justice, peace, and wisdom.

The Summer Solstice is a gateway to vast energies that bathe the Earth and all life. Our bodies respond through our solar plexus, our power center, our sun.

A challenge that manifests is to be strong in body, clear in mind, large of heart, as this time shines light on all aspects of life.

Spells at this time are for lovers, divining the future, marriage, protection, and good luck. It is a time to watch for signs and portents.

Fire
Try your hand at scrying. Focus on a candle flame, incense smoke, dripping candle wax, or a summer fire pit, letting images appear. Write them down and research their meanings.

Water
Go to a river, lake, or a body of water, chant your wish (or wishes) and float flowers you have kissed in the water (Roses, jasmine). 

Earth
Create a charm for dreaming: Pick 9 flowers and place in a pouch under your pillow.
Create a magical protection sigil:  Use a rock from the yard, woods, or a walk and place at your front door (or just inside the door).

Air
Build a Witch’s Ladder: Take 3 cords of equal length (White, Red, Black) and braid together with 9 different colored feathers knotted in.  While doing this weaving put in a) general protection and good fortune or b) specific purpose of gaining health, property, mystical knowledge.

Blessed Be.

As we know, Springtime is when the beauty of nature appears. Trees grow leaves, grass become thick and green, flowers, bloom and the energy of life surfaces all around us. Seeds that have been planted prior to spring are expected to grow both in the natural and in the spiritual realm. Sometimes your spiritual spring harvest may have a weed problem, which can choke your bounty and stunt its growth, preventing the opening of nature’s beauty. Do not be discouraged if you find weeds in your garden. This issue can be resolved by plucking up the weeds by the root which will Open the Door to Beauty.

Items Needed:
1 Black & White free-standing Jumbo candle
1 Black & Red free-standing Jumbo candle
1 Purple free-standing Jumbo candle
1 White free-standing Jumbo candle
1 Black free-standing Jumbo candle

A mixture of the following:
Abre Camino
Chicory
Lotus
Moonwort
Dirt Daubers Nest
Red Pepper
Block Buster Oil
Road Opener Oil
Power Oil
Crown of Success Oil
Cascarilla
White Pepper
This Road Opener is designed to be done on a Full Moon. Clean yourself and your work area. Powder down your mixture of Abre Camino, Chicory, Lotus, Moonwort, Dirt Daubers Nest and Red Pepper. Draw a cross with the Cascarilla and White Pepper. Dress your 4 corner candles (Black & White, Black & Red, all Black, all White) with your herb powder and a few drops of Block Buster and Road Opener Oil, working the candle from top to the bottom. Place your all black candle at the top of the cross, the all white at the bottom, the black and white candle on the left arm of the cross and the black and red on the right arm. Dress your purple candle with Power Oil and Crown of Success Oil and place it in the middle on top of your petition.

Your petition should be what you are trying to draw in (what you want) written three times. Be sure that you are specific when you write your petition, then turn paper clockwise and write your name across your desire three times in larger writing then your request. Dress it with a drop each of the Power Oil and the Crown of Success Oil. Fold it towards you. Turn it clockwise and fold again if necessary.

Light your candles during the hour of Sun and recite the following Prayer three times:

My God the Creator of all things, I humbly ask that you remove all hindrances preventing the success of this request. Let my Ancestors and Guardians move on my behalf. Bind the hands, the tongues, the thoughts and movements of my enemies and do not allow anything or anyone to hinder on any level the success of this request. Pluck them up by their root. Make a way out of no way and open the roads. Make a way out of no way and open the doors. I thank you for favor and for Granting My Request.

Now Have FAITH, Stay Encouraged, and Expect Your Blessings!

When traumatic situations arise, regaining emotional balance can be a challenge. With many focused on physical health, it’s crucial to remember the importance of caring for the emotional body. Cultivating good emotional health not only bolsters the immune system but also offers mental and spiritual clarity. Below are a few spiritual tips you can employ to improve spiritual well-being. 

Washing Away What Ails
Of the four elements, water is, to many, that most closely associated with healing, tranquility, and purification. Spiritual bathing is an integral part of healing and restoring the emotional body and spirit. Some excellent curios to add to a calming bath include Florida Water, Tranquility oil, and crushed or powdered lavender buds. 

Light Your World
Color and light can do wonders to improve the mood. Bring both into your environment with candle magick. Yellow candles can be burned to invite uplifting, solar energy to a person or space. Fix with orange oil before burning for added effect.

Green Peace
Herbs and roots can function as facilitators of emotional expression and healing. My top three:

• Queen Elizabeth root, helpful in keeping the emotions in balance.
• Aspand Rue, burned to comfort during times of grief.
• Clary Sage, used as an oil to calm and elevate one’s mood.

Wishing you and yours continual health & peace.

I became aware of Saint Corona a few days before Easter — the time that was projected as an affirmation of Hope that we could open our country “up” again from COVID-19 and its devastating effects. Her introduction came to me through an e-mail link to a “Patron Saint of Epidemics.” Intrigued, I read the translated Austrian web page of the Parish dedicated to her — a former monastery dating back to the 1000’s and formally named Heiligenstatt. Once Heiligenstatt solidified into a community, the name of the monastery was changed to the Parish of St. Corona at Weschel.

The claim that St. Corona was the patron Saint of Pandemics was first circulated by GloriaTV, with certain popular Catholic websites and even the Diocese of Lansing, Michigan, also helping spread the word. In fact, Corona has been considered a Patron Saint of lumberjacks and treasure hunters, not pandemics or plagues.

Where Did This Come From?

Best guesses are that St. Corona lived around AD 165 in Cilicia, part of today’s Turkey. Legend states that in AD 177, during the persecution of Christians under the Roman Emperor Antonius Verus, a Roman soldier named Viktor, from Cilicia, was martyred and executed for his Christian faith. Encouraged by Viktor’s courage to confess, Corona, the wife of a soldier, also professed to be a Christian. The governor had Corona tied with ropes between two bent palm trees, and her body was torn to pieces by the palm trees snapping back.

The Italian Connection

It has been said that her head is particularly venerated in Monte Romane, Italy; Emperor Otto III (983 — 1002 AD) brought relics of St. Corona to Aachen, Germany, where they are kept in the cathedral to this day. The feast of St. Corona is celebrated on May 14th.

Dedication to St. Corona, seen as an avatar to deliver requests for steadfastness in faith, is for safety against storms and crop failures. At the time, tree cutters lived almost exclusively in sparsely populated, wooded areas and theirs was a dangerous profession, so they sought protection and help from St. Corona and adopted her as their patron saint. They hoped for special protection and help for their concerns, as St. Corona had been killed by two palm trees, and would take sympathy on those who worked gathering the wood for construction of homes and other structures. In northern Italy as well, she is particularly revered as a patron saint of forest workers, whether migrant workers or lumber traders.

So Why Not Ask Saint Corona?

What if we choose to see Saint Corona as an avatar to deliver requests for deliverance from epidemics, requests of help in the small needs of daily life? Would she answer us, just as she answered generations of woodsmen who felt a kinship to her?

One of the things that has developed as a result of this pandemic is the time for introspection and a re-evaluation on what truly is meaningful and what matters in this life.

So I offer up a ritual for you, to ask for strength during this time, and for a diminishing of the ravages of COVID-19. 

 

Ritual For St. Corona On Feast Day May 14th
For Protection From The Coronavirus Covid-19

Ingredients:
• White Sage smudge stick
• 1 white 7-day “novena” type vigil candle
• 1 glass of cool water
• 1 small vase of white carnations
• 1 prayer card or image of St. Corona (can be printed off the Internet)

First, clean candle with lemon juice or Florida Water, making sure you clean outside and inside of glass, top of wax, and wick. Set aside to dry. When dry, set in center of table or altar.

Smudge candle above, below, and around outer glass. Set smudge bundle aside in fire-safe container or dish to use again.

Fill glass with cool water (spring water is best). Set to right of candle.

Arrange white carnations in vase and set to left of candle.

Place image of St. Corona in frame or tape/tack to wall behind candle, making sure that it is sufficiently distanced from candle flame for fire safety.

Relight white sage smudge bundle and smudge the entire altar offering area. Set bundle aside in fire-safe container or dish.

Say these words:

Lord Jesus Christ, You came into this world for our salvation. Look kindly on us now, we pray, that we, and all those who serve You, might be kept safe from this epidemic.
Heal those who are sick, comfort the suffering, bring back those who have gone astray, and above all, increase our faith, O Lord. 
Give us the grace to follow You and, like the martyr St. Corona, who gave her life for love of You, to take up our crosses daily without fear or hesitation.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on us and on the whole world.
St. Corona, we ask that you protect COVID-19 victims, and pray for us.

  Allow candle to burn until it is out. If you have to extinguish candle, make sure you snuff out the candle, as blowing it out means you are ‘done’ with the ritual and will not be re-lighting the candle. Snuff candle out with candle snuffer or by placing a ceramic or glass plate or other flame-proof flat dish over the rim of the vigil candle, allowing it to go out naturally.

Re-light candle when you want to continue with the ritual until candle is finished. When the ritual is done (about 7 days), pour out the water into the drain of the street or somewhere away from your home so you will not step or “cross” over it. Crush the flowers into a large pot of boiling water along with Epsom Salts, Florida Water, and a capful of clear ammonia, for a future cleansing bath for yourself.

Saint Expedite, beloved of many residents of New Orleans (among other places), is the patron saint of those with faith in his rapid solutions to their problems, who want immediate financial success, and who seek to end delays so that forward movement can at last be seen. Some petition him to aid and assist in overcoming bad habits long in need of change, procrastination chief among them. His feast day is April 19th, when many set up altars, burning candles and giving offerings in his honor. His chosen day throughout the year is Wednesday.

Saint Expedite is pictured as a young brown-haired Roman soldier draped in a red cape, holding a palm frond in one hand and an upright cross with the word “HODIE” (“today” in Old Latin) on it. Under one foot is a black crow, which holds a ribbon in its mouth with the word “CRAS” (“tomorrow” in Old Latin) written across it. The message of the image: stamp out putting off until tomorrow what can be done today.

St. Expedite is popular in Italy, Spain. Portugal, and Latin America, as well as New Orleans, LA, where a statue of Expedite is stationed in the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Rampart Street. Legend has it that when the construction of the Church had finished, the priests sent an order for statuary to place in the Church. One crate arrived with the words “EXPEDITO” (meaning to rush, hurry or “expedite”). The priests thought that the word “EXPEDITO” was the name of this statue; hence the legend was born. There are statues of St. Expedite worldwide, thus creating more of a mystery on who this Saint really is!

Altars honoring Saint Expedite are filled with flowers and red candles, to match his red cloak, but also red is a magical color symbolizing energy, “heat,” and power. If you choose to work with Expedite, light a red candle and place it center back on the table, with his statue or image to the right-hand corner and a glass of water to the left. (If using a prayer card taped to the candle, set the candle to the right side and the water glass to the left.)

  If and when St. Expedite grants your wishes and answers your prayers, you need to “pay” him. I say “if” he answers your prayers as sometimes he will not “work” with you for your immediate success. Do not take this as an insult; it is simply that he is not the one you need to be petitioning for your situation. However, if he does bring you the blessings you request, it is tradition to give him the gift of flowers, slices of pound cake (some say Sara Lee frozen pound cake that has been thawed), and some say a glass of red wine. It is crucial to make this offering to him after his work is done, as to not do so will incur his wrath and he will take back all that he has given you. Some go so far as to publish in the local newspaper his wondrous works, just like many do for St. Jude.

Traditionally, you are to approach your altar daily and state your prayer as your candle burns (several days), and when your request is granted, pour the water from the glass into the empty candle glass and place your flowers in it (using the glass candle as a vase). Set the pound cake on a plate in front of his image and pour red wine in the glass that held the water originally. After a day or two, take the pound cake and crumble it for the birds outside and pour the wine in the grass outside. Allow the flowers to naturally fade and wilt, then toss into the trash. Tell someone his wondrous works and how he has helped.

Some have chosen to encourage actions of St. Expedite and will pay him in advance, hoping that he will speed up the process of answering their prayers, but I have no idea if this is as effective a following the traditional methodology of setting up his altar. I have been told to wait until blessings have been received or situation has been changed before giving your cake and wine. In all cases, be sure to make your offering as soon as possible so that the blessings will not be reversed; otherwise, you might need to do the offering again to regain what you have lost.