The New American Bible, World Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan
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Uif! Uxfmwf!Xpnfo! pg!uif!Dibmjdf! -- a method of contemplation based on ancient symbols and timeless spiritual teachings, designed to empower the Divine Feminine in all – by Leddy Hammock This book is designed to accompany The Runes of the Twelve Women of the Chalice designed by Leddy Hammock and also Twelve Women of the Chalice a set of CDs including twelve meditations written and spoken by Leddy Hammock with twelve mystical songs with lyrics by Leddy Hammock and music written in twelve keys and sung by Sue Riley, with Twelve Women of the Chalice Songbook, with piano/vocal scores, lead sheets, and lyric sheets i Copyright © 2008 by Leddy Hammock Published and distributed by Unity Courtyard Press Editorial Supervision: Russ Hammock All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording, nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted or otherwise be copied for public or private use – other than “fair use” as brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews without prior written permission of the publisher. Third printing, June, 2008; fourth printing, April, 2011 Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 978-0-615-20112-2 Unity Courtyard Press 2465 Nursery Road Clearwater, Florida 33764 [email protected] ii The Twelve Women of the Chalice Strength of Tamar, Life of Rahab, Zeal of Ruth, Release of Bathsheba, Pure Love of Mary of Nazareth, Faith of Elizabeth, Imagination of Anna, Divine Order of Mary, wife of Alphaeus, Discernment of Salome’, Will of Martha, Understanding of Mary of Bethany, Power of Mary, the Magdalene -- these twelve women I Am, for I Am a Woman of Spiritual Power. You are the Chalice of the Christ. iii ! J!efejdbuf!uijt!cppl! up!nz!cfmpwfe!npuifs-! Mfeez!Jsfof!Uvsofs-! nz!gjstu!tqjsjuvbm!Ufbdifs-! b!xpnbo!pg!hsfbu! tqjsjuvbm!qpxfs/! !! .!Mfeez!Ibnnpdl-!3119! ! Uijt!5ui!qsjoujoh-!jo!uif!Tqsjoh!pg!3122-!! jt!efejdbufe!up!nz!Ebvhiufst!jo!Mpwf/! Nbsjmzo!Sfhjfs!boe!Kfoojgfs!Sboepmqi/! tuspoh!boe!cfbvujgvm!xpnfo!pg!qpxfs/ Bible quotations in this book are from The New American Bible, World Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan. iv !!“Tu/!!!!! !!!Cfsobse-!Bccpu!!! !!!pg!!!Dmbjswbvy-!!sptf!!up!!!! !bmnptu!tvqsfnf!qpxfs!jo!ijt!divsdi-!! cz!!qfstjtufoumz!!hb{joh!!upxbse!!uif!!uxfmwf! tubst!!jo!!uif!!ejbefn!pg!!Nbsz!!jo!Qbsbejtf/! He urged others to do likewise: ‘If the winds of temptation blow fiercely upon you, look to these stars. If you find yourselves in a sea of trouble, look to these stars. If you are tossed on the waves of pride, ambition, envy, look to these stars, and invoke the name of Mary.’” Emma Curtis Hopkins, High Mysticism, p. 8 v You are a vessel for a holy purpose. “All the prophets, preachers, sages, righteous men and women of the Bible represent the Divine Idea or Word of God, come in one form or another to your Mind.” “There are twelve manner of men [and women] in the world and you are one of them.” ________________________ Annie Rix Militz, Unity Bible Lessons, 1893 Be empty of self to be filled with Spirit. vi Dpoufout! Introduction to the Twelve Women of the Chalice ix Chapter One: The Work of Charles Fillmore 1 Chapter Two: The Unfolding Exegesis 5 Chapter Three: The Colors and Code 35 Chapter Four: Stories of the Women 51 Chapter Five: Inspiration from Emma Curtis Hopkins 81 Chapter Six: Responsive Readings 91 Chapter Seven: Meditations 117 Chapter Eight: The Tradition of the Twelve Stones 143 Chapter Nine: Interpretations 151 Chapter Ten: Womanifestation 173 Chapter Eleven: Candle Lighting Service 183 Chapter Twelve: Runes of the Twelve Women 189 vii ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! viii Jouspevdujpo! The Twelve Women of the Chalice The idea of the number twelve as a symbol of spiritual fulfillment is as old as time. In the dawn of the New Thought movement in America, Mrs. Emma Curtis Hopkins, called the “Teacher of Teachers,” spoke of the twelve jewels of High Mysticism. Among her students, Mrs. Annie Rix Militz wrote of the twelve disciples as representing twelve spiritual faculties, and Charles Fillmore, Cofounder of the Unity Movement, wrote of the Twelve Powers of Man, likening the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ to twelve spiritual powers of humanity. In a movement of religious thought wherein women have always served and shone as co-equal partners in spirituality and in ministry with men, the time has arrived to acknowledge that there are also female representatives of the twelve powers of humanity to be found in the Bible, the basic Unity text. Searching for a criterion for selecting these female representatives, we turn to the Gospels. Several women are named there, including Joanna and Susanna, who are mentioned as being among the women who helped support the ministry of Jesus (Luke 8:3). Also named in the Gospels is Herodias—the infamous wife of Herod, who instigated the beheading of John the Baptist. We also read about three women healed by Jesus and Jairus’ daughter whom He raised from the dead. Unnamed, but also noted, are the women of Canaan and Samaria, the poor widow who placed two small coins in the Temple treasury, and Pilate’s wife. ix We also read of the woman with the alabaster jar at the house of Simon. She is not named in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, and is identified in Luke only as a “sinful woman” at the Pharisee’s house. (In John, it is Mary of Bethany who anoints the feet of Jesus with costly perfume and dries His feet with her hair. There does not appear to be any scriptural basis for identifying Mary of Bethany as the same woman as Mary Magdalene, nor for identifying Mary of Bethany or Mary Magdalene as sinful women; there is no biblical account of Mary Magdalene ever having anointed Jesus). Seeking criteria for twelve female representatives of the spiritual powers of humanity, we can begin with the first book of the New Testament. There, in the genealogy of Jesus as recorded in the Book of Matthew, we find the names of four women: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and, of course, Mary of Nazareth. Although Bathsheba is not personally named here, she is referred to in the “family tree” as King Solomon’s mother, so we count her among the five women noted in Jesus’ genealogy. Four “great grandmothers” of Jesus are mentioned in all the generations leading to the birth of Jesus by Mary of Nazareth: 1.) Tamar, 2.) Ruth, 3.) Rahab, 4.) Bathsheba, and 5.) Mary of Nazareth. A careful search of the Gospels reveals three women named in the gospels as being blood relatives either of Jesus or of at least one of the disciples: 6.) Elizabeth (cousin to Mary of Nazareth); 7.) Mary of Alphaeus (“the other Mary”— sometimes noted as the sister of Mary of Nazareth), the mother of James, who was the son of Alphaeus (who is also identified by tradition as Clopas); and 8.) Salomé (the wife of Zebedee, mother of James and John). x The remaining four women were selected as representatives of spiritual faculties because they were named in the Gospels, and their conversations with and concerning Jesus, in His presence, express their acknowledgment of Him as their spiritual Teacher. These women walked with Him and talked with Him. Along with the twelve disciples, they could be called the first women “ministers” of the Way. Anna the Prophetess blessed the infant Jesus and declared His spiritual mission when He was brought to the Temple by His mother and Joseph. Martha welcomed Jesus to her home as honored guest, friend, and Teacher. Her sister, Mary of Bethany, anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair. Mary Magdalene was the first to greet Jesus after He had risen and was the first minister commissioned to deliver the announcement of the Resurrection. Without these four women, no account of the ministry of Jesus would be complete: 9.) Anna, the Prophetess; 10.) Martha of Bethany; 11.) Mary of Bethany; 12.) Mary Magdalene. The complete pattern is: I.) five women noted in the genealogy of Jesus in the Book of Matthew; II.) three women named as relatives of Jesus and/or His disciples; and III.) four other (named) female followers who declared the spiritual leadership of Jesus Christ in His presence. The total is twelve, a symbol of spiritual fulfillment. Following logic and spiritual intuition (as did Charles Fillmore), we can align each of these women to a spiritual faculty, taking into prayerful consideration the meanings of each woman’s name, relationship to the disciple Fillmore chose to represent that faculty, and integral involvement in the Bible account. The result is a teaching model of twelve spiritual faculties of the Christ nature, intuitively revealed through women named in scripture. These Twelve women of the Chalice are vessels to a holy purpose, willing to take up the “cup” of Christ: to embody the ideal for perfected humanity and therefore, “rebuild the Temple.” xi The Twelve Women of the Torah A set of twelve representatives of the Divine Feminine could also be drawn from Genesis, first book of the Torah, following the line of succession of women named in scripture from 1.) Eve “mother of all living”), through 2.) Sarai, renamed Sarah (half- sister of Abraham, who was descended from Noah, who was descended from Seth, third son of Eve; who bore Isaac to Abraham); through 3.) Rebekah, who bore Jacob to Isaac; and through the four mothers of the twelve sons of Jacob – 4.) Leah, 5.) Rachel, 6.) Zilpah, and 7.) Bilhah); through 8.) Tamar, mother of the twin sons of Judah (Perez and Zerah); through 9.) Asenath, who bore Manasseh and Ephraim to Joseph, the son of Rachel (Joshua, who succeeded Moses, was of the tribe of Ephraim, whose people later joined with King David in uniting Israel); 10.) Rahab and 11.) Ruth who bore sons (to Salmon and Boaz, respectively) in the line of Judah through Perez, son of Tamar, leading to David, king of Israel, whose son, Solomon, born by 12.) Bathsheba built the Temple.