T4W has public celebrations for New Moons and the Eight Festivals which make up the Wheel of the Year.

The Wheel of the Year

The Wheel of the Year symbolizes the passage of time, and how we mark it. It comes from the circular motion of everything, the earth's orbit around the sun, the moon's orbit around the earth, etc. Similarly, we believe in a circular movement of life, that there is no Beginning and no Ending: with birth, there is death, but then there is re-birth. Many cultures and religions attend to the belief of circular movement and it can be seen in the passage of the year: Spring to Summer to Autumn to Winter, and back to Spring. It is a renewal, it is Nature going through her changes, and as a part of Nature, so, too, do we see ourselves as a part of her everlasting cosmic and magickal Circle.

Eight Festivals/Sabbats

T4W celebrates eight sabbats, which are the festivals of each season of life. They include: Samhain, Yule, Candlemas, Oestara, Beltane, Litha, Lammas, and Mabon. Listed below are brief descriptions of each sabbat, when in the year they occur, other names they go by, and their significance to T4W.

Samhain: late October/early November. This is the third and final harvest of the year, when there was fear that the food grown that year wouldn't survive the winter. We also mark this as the beginning of our year. We prepare to rest, as the earth will rest from its harvests that it has given us the previous seasons. Today, we view this as a time of darkness, but not fear. Darkness is a time to gather our energy, focus our minds, prepare for the coming seasons that will make us so busy again. Re-prioritize, discover how you've changed, how you would like to change, and make the most of what you have accomplished, for yourself and your environment!

Yule: Yule is the marking of a newborn year, in that all things must take a deep breath before going on into the rest of the year.

Candlemas: Candlemas brings hope, that the cold is almost over, and it is time to prepare for the coming growing seasons. The plans must be made to make ready the land for sowing crops and grazing animals.

Oestara: Oestara is the epitome of Spring, bringing flowers, leaves, and baby animals into the world once more. It is a beautiful sight after months of darkness and cold. The sun is starting to shine more and the world is awakening to behold the renewal of life, a promise fulfilled.

Beltane: Also known as Mayday, Beltane is the sacred month of the God and Goddess, when they join in love and continue the cycle of life.

Litha: We celebrate the longest day of the year, Summer Solstice. We honor the crops that are growing and hope that the rest of the season sees them thrive, so that we may have abundant amounts of food for the coming sold seasons. Litha celebrates life, love, marriage, and light.

Lammas: Lammas celebrates the first harvest, a time when people start preparing to bring in the crops, and preparing them for proper storage to last throughout the winter. These crops include grains and corn.

Mabon: Mabon is the time of second harvest, when grapes and the bulk of the grain and corn crops were reaped.

New Moons

New Moons mark the beginning a new lunar cycle. It occurs once every 29 days. It is a time of renewal for that month, and symbolizes the start of a new lunar orbit around the earth. New moons are special because they represent an ancient way of telling time. Our pre-clock ancestors would know the time of month, and thus year, by seeing what phase of moon was in the sky. This helped them determine crop planting, harvesting, rituals, and even domestic events. This is still in use today by many people, and we honor the moon's presence in our lives by attending ritual, encouraging the public to join us in our celebration and awe of the magick of the Moon.