The Silent Supper is a component of Samhain spiritual practice that sets a place at a ritual or real table for the Ancestors. This can be a beer, a cocktail, a dish of food, a dog treat, a catnip mouse, or anything that reminds one of the Ancestors.
While this can easily be done during Samhain, it is Right Practice to honour the Ancestors more frequently. One can put a dog collar, or a dog biscuit, or really any article of remembrance on an Ancestor altar. It does not have to be large – it just has to be.
For those who wish to include a brief prayer during ritual, I offer one here:
The Rev. Robert Henderson passed away last night, 25 July 2024, after a brief illness. He was 55 years old. I considered Rob as a friend, a fellow priest, and a mentor. He was a good man.
Rob joined ADF in 1996 and was one of the few members with a three-digit membership number. He was a long-time member of Shining Lakes Grove in Ann Arbor. He led Shining Lakes Grove tirelessly for over two decades as Senior Druid. The Shining Lakes liturgy remained consistent for the many years that I attended. It harkened back to a style that pre-dated the Core Order of Ritual and contained many beautiful elements from an earlier time in ADF history. His rituals were a thing of beauty.
Rob was an ADF Priest. He was ordained by Fox, the 3rd ADF Archdruid, on 2 February 2002, on Imbolc. While it was not called ordination at the time, Rob was an Ordained ADF Priest. And a damn good one.
Rob was the chair of the Grove Organizing Committee and ran it beautifully, keeping a close eye on standards, procedures, and deadlines. Rob was also the Chief of Oi Asproi Koukouvayies: White Owls Kin, the Kin of the Hellenic Hearth.
I first met Rob at a Shining Lakes ritual in the very early 2000s. It was held out at Botsford Reserve, a beautiful and magical tract of land that was at once close to Ann Arbor and again nestled in the woods to the point where one could forget where they were.
I was a solitary for almost 20 years (with a brief exception as a member of River of Night Protogrove in the Twin Cities) and Shining Lakes was my first encounter with organized ADF ritual. I had built my ADF ritual practices off old copies of A Druid’s Progress and when I first saw a Shining Lakes rite, I was truly blown away.
When I showed up for my first rite, I introduced myself to Rob and told him my brief history and he took the time to explain the Shining Lakes rite to me in detail. I came to consider the Shining Lakes rite as the “traditional” grove rite. The beauty of the procession through the woods to the nematon, the offerings to the Outsiders, the large groups of people that would gather for the rites, all of these made it feel like family to me.
When it came time to enter the Clergy Training Program, I often looked back on the things that Rob did in ritual and used that to mold my ritual style moving forward. I stayed with Shining Lakes for many years, taking a brief year-or-so hiatus to support another Grove, only to find myself back in Shining Lakes not long thereafter. It was good to be home.
I remember sadly when Mr. Botsford passed away, and our home-from-home at Botsford’s disappeared too quickly and that part of history was gone. Rob took the group to a horse farm near Ypsilanti and then eventually ended up at Fox’s property.
I remember when some of his more serious health problems first surfaced, and the subsequent surgeries and recoveries. I provided transport to several ConVocations and participated in rituals at Midwest Pagan Convention. Every time, Rob was there representing not only Shining Lakes Grove, but ADF as well.
Rob approached so many of his duties with dedication and dependability and perseverance. Just a week ago, his main concern was getting things done for Ann Arbor Pagan Pride. He was that kind of person.
When I saw Rob for the last time yesterday, he was resting peacefully, and I offered him prayers and I anointed him with water from Brighid’s Well at Kildare. One journey was ending, and another was beginning. Yesterday, I called him my friend. He was a good man.
I wrote this prayer for him yesterday, to call Danu, Bel, and Ana, River Goddess, to his side.
This blessing is also called the Nine-Fold Blessing because it includes the three realms, the three Hallows, and the three Kindreds.
It can be used for any item, snd i feel that it works best if there is a well, a tree, and a fire (or representation thereof) nearby. As each blessing is called, hold the item over the appropriate symbol, and then rotate the item three times to the right over the well, tree, or fire.
Triple Call Blessing
The Nine-Fold Blessing
We call to the realms to bless this <item>
May the Land bless this <item>
May the Sea bless this <item>
May the Sky bless this <item>
We call to the hallows to bless this <item>:
May the Well bless this <item>
May the Tree bless this <item>
May the Fire bless this <item>
We call to the Kindreds to bless this <item>:
May the Ancestors bless this <item>
May the Nature Spirits bless this <item>
May the Shining Ones bless this <item>
May this Nine-Fold Blessing protect this <item> and the one who use it,
We find ourselves today in times of uncertainty as the Covid-19 pandemic reaches out to touch all our lives. We call to the Kindreds to protect us in these times.
There are certain, practical things that we can do to protect ourselves: limit our exposure to others, washing our hands, being aware of the potential for contamination in the world around us. Practical hygiene will go a long way in protecting us in an immediate sense.
As people with relationships to the spirits and Kindreds, this is an excellent time to call to them daily to ask for their help and protection and to thank them for the blessings we already have. I truly believe that they listen and even an offering of “thank you” is an offering, nonetheless.
As a leader and as a priest, if I can be of any assistance, please feel free to reach out to myself or any of the Mother Grove and / or Clergy Council for assistance. If we cannot help you directly, we will find someone who can.
A Druid's Progress 