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Church Called Four Quarters by Kailin Miller -sung to
the House of The Rising Sun-  There is a
church called Four Quarters, Where we raise the Standing Stones.
Its been a place of sacred space And now it calls us home.
 My mothers name
is Gaia, My fathers name is Herne. I walk these lands
in reverence I listen, and I learn.

The first Stone stands in challenge, Then came the Mother
home. The Teacher stands beside her Theyve made this land their
own.
 The Seer shares her visions, The Speaker
shares his songs. The Walker travels moonlight
To guide the others home

The Throne nows stands at seventh, Beside the All-in-One
The Doorway waits before us all, With One Whose Time Has Come.
 The Mirror shows your spirit Aspiration
stands revealed Fortitude will carry you Let sorrows past be healed
 So Mother tell your children, To see
what we have done. A work of generations Is what we have begun.

There
is a church called Four Quarters Where we raise the Standing Stones
Its been a place of sacred space And now it calls
us home | A Short History of The
Standing Stones by Orren
Whiddon Oct 1999
In comparison to the Megalithic Monuments built by our ancient forebears, the
Circle of Standing Stones at Four Quarters is a small undertaking. A 200 foot
by 160 foot ellipse requiring perhaps one hundred separate slabs and at least
twenty years to build, the Circle seems a very large project to those of us who
have taken up its completion. And it does require a very real commitment. But
when we think of the level of commitment from the tribes that built the Megalithic
Monuments that are our common heritage, our own commitment pales in comparison.
And here lies a lesson and perhaps the real meaning behind
the Megalithic Impulse. Because to build these monuments does require a very real
commitment that must extend over time and be communicated to others, so the
work can be carried on. And it is this shared commitment that imbues these structures
with meaning and magic, and causes them to speak a language all can understand,
even thousands of years after their creation. It is worth taking a moment to think
of the lives and times of the Neolithic agrarian peoples of Europe who constructed
the monuments that we are most familiar with. Their lives, tied as they were
to the cycles of the seasons and the wheel of the year, could not have been as
physically easy as are ours. And how they were able to find the time in their
lives to carry through the ceremonial commitments made by their own forbears.
Continuing the creation of these monuments and passing these commitments into
the lives of their descendants. A continuity of ceremonial intent shared through
many generations that has resulted in The Avebury Complex, Stonehenge, The Carnac
Alignments and countless others. It is sobering to compare the spiritual dedication
of our own lives and times to the people who made these gifts that have come down
to us through the millennia. In our own time the physical
works of Humankind dwarf anything created by the Ancients. We have harnessed the
liquid energy accumulated over millions of years within the body of the Earth,
we have woven a web of quantified information that spans the planet and is in
fact the means through which you are probably reading these words. In fact, we
in the West live as Gods returned to Earth, but have we lost their wisdom?
If the physical fact of a Circle of Stones standing upright
were important, this would be a child's play to achieve. Simply a matter of money
and a few days' application of the technical magic that defines our culture.
But the physical fact is not the message here, but rather the context within which
these monuments are created. The context of a personal commitment of Sacrifice,
Ceremony and Celebration made by many people. So we have
set upon ourselves the task of creating this Circle of Standing Stones, this Sanctuary
of EarthReligion. And doing so in the old way. Realizing that the process, not
the physical medium, is the message and the magic. And in so doing, we transform
ourselves. Somewhere is a high school yearbook from
1974, and written inside are the words "someday to build a Stone Circle."
signed, Orren Whiddon. Stone Circles have been on the edge of my secret life for
many years. I began looking for the land to create Four
Quarters in the spring of 1993 and found the land that fall. It was composed of
two separate farms which, when combined, made for the beautiful completeness of
the camp. A long process of negotiation for the two parcels was completed in the
fall of 1994 and planning immediately began with Nybor and Elspeth of Haven for
the first Stones Rising, with a date set for late May of 1995. Work began to bring
roads into the property and the grove which would become the site for the Stone
Circle was prepared, while a long search was made to locate a quarry that could
supply the large stone slab for the circle. We found M and S Quarries located
in far western Maryland and they have been the supplier of stone for the Circle
ever since. The Circle of Standing Stones
is actually an ellipse, 200 feet East to West and 160 feet North to South. In
the spring of 1995 it was laid out in alignment with True North, with the North
Altar and the first East Gate Stone raised that May at the first Stones Rising.
As we lived through the summer with that single stone, we came to realize that
the true North alignment did not rest well with the aspect of the site, and the
ellipse was shifted 12 degrees West of North, to bring the Circle into alignment
with the lay of the land. That has since been proven to be the right decision
as we continue to add stones to the Circle. The winter
of 1995-96 was exceptionally hard one, with deep snow and ice. The region experiencing
the worst-ever recorded flood in mid-January, which left the Alleghenies frozen
with cover of ice. By March it seemed that spring would never arrive. Our quarry
contacted us and explained that they were unable to bring their equipment into
the iced-up mountaintop workings and might not be able to deliver stone in time
for the second Rising. In early April of 1996 the members of The Assembly of the
Sacred Wheel, a Delaware Church of Wicca, consecrated the entire circumference
of the Circle and placed marker posts at the three remaining Quarters Gates. Their
act was a much-needed encouragement to me at that time, as money grew tight, my
marriage collapsed, and it seemed even the Stones could not be brought to the
land. In the beginning of May, with three weeks until the
second rising, the quarrymen were finally able to bring their equipment into their
workings, and I received the phone call I had been waiting for. When I arrived
I found a most marvelously textured and colored 13 foot long slab of reddish sandstone,
but marred by a crack running from its apex to its center. It was one of only
three possible stones and we were running out of time. I spent the day at the
quarry, unwilling to use stones that did not feel right and working out the alternatives.
There is a tradition among European Megalithism of Spirit
stones or Portal stones. Large flat slabs that have been worked in such a way
as to have a circular hole pierced through them. And of course the only way to
stop a crack is to drill it through at its root. I conferred with the quarrymen;
drilling the stone was risky, it might shatter and there would be very little
time. The weekend before the second Stones Rising this
stone and its consort arrived on the land and as we began to gently unload this
new stone we were struck with wonder at what it had become. A thirteen foot tall
slab of sandstone, with a red streak flowing from its apex to an eighteen inch
diameter portal worked through the center of the stone. And as it was raised in
ceremony, it was clear to all that the Mother Stone had come to the Land. That
day, the Mothers and Fathers began bringing their young babies to be passed through
this gateway in the Stone, and into our community. They have never stopped. The
promise had been kept, three stones stood on the hilltop, and it was possible
to believe that more would follow. We were on our way.
Those first two years we learned a lot about working with the Stones. What worked
well and what just did not work at all. Just like the ancients, we wanted as much
stone as possible above grade, and because our quarry rarely produces stones above
12 feet in length, from the first year we poured concrete foundations for the
Stones to stand upon. We excavate below frost line and pour a footer, and mold
in its top face a receiving slot designed to match the foot of each Stone. This
is a delicate process when it comes to mounting the Stones, because they must
be maneuvered into exact alignment with the receiving notch and then slowly raised
upright. We have gained a great deal of experience in moving these large masses;
heavy machinery is not required and actually makes it more difficult. Long wooden
pry beams, wood rollers and rope are our primary tools, and lots of willing muscle
power make it happen. The right amount of energy placed in exactly the right way,
and the Stones seem to almost move themselves. And when one tries to force them,
they will not move at all. Our first two years we did all
of the moving and positioning of the Stones prior to Stones Rising, leaving the
Stones reclining on supports, already mounted upon their concrete footers. During
the ceremony of the Rising, the Stones were raised by the assembled people pulling
on ropes tied directly to the Stones. This resulted in far more power being applied
to the Stones than was necessary to raise them, human power that could not be
directed or applied with focus. In 1996 this resulted in the restraining chains
being pulled off their mountings, and for a few heart-thumping minutes, the Stones
stood upright with nothing but the stone crews to keep them there while new restraints
were placed. In 1997 we first used a large block and tackle, and we limited
the number of people on the ropes by insisting that they take the morning workshop
on the Stones. This worked quite well by allowing a much slower and more focused
application of human energy to the Raising. In 1998 we felt confident enough of
our abilities that we experimented with moving one of the four Stones on rollers
from the High Meadow into the Circle and then placing and raising it, all as a
part of the ceremonials. This worked beautifully and added much to the ritual.
For 1999 all of the Stones were moved over a quarter mile, by the stone crews
using long tow lines and wooden rollers. They were brought into Circle, positioned
on the footers and raised upright with over 150 people directly participating.
Every part of the process integrated into the day-long ceremonials. The energetic
effect was profound and sets a clear direction for us in planning future ceremony.
People ask when the Stone Circle will be finished, and
of course I do not know. I am not sure I even know what "finished" would
be. I have some idea when this first ring will be erected, perhaps in twenty years
or so. But if the larger purpose behind this Circle is successful, then I doubt
that it will stop with that one ring. There will be more. And I doubt that it
will stop with this Circle. I hope not. People ask me what
the Stones represent and I ask in return "What do you see?" They mean
as little or as much as that. They mean many things to many people and I can only
speak to what they mean to me. They speak to me of the
core of the religious experience. Of the very real sacrifice that has been made
by many people to bring the Circle this far and the greater sacrifices that will
be required to carry the work on. They speak to me of the ceremony carried on
within the Circle, ceremonial traditions from around the world finding a
common home. Safe and Sacred Space. And the celebration of Spirit that comes as
a natural part of sacrifice and ceremony. But most
importantly, they speak of people and community. Because in this modern world
the Standing Stones cannot stand alone. Only people sharing themselves with each
other can hold the Stone Circle safe into the future.
Imagine the world to be in 300 years, and the look in a child's eyes as they enter
the Circle in ceremony for the first time. The Circle cared for and passed on
from hand to hand and from person to person. Still to be there for that child's
awe and wonder, long after we as the individuals of today have passed on and been
forgotten. Then we could say that our own work has been
successful and the Circle will stand, complete.
Sacrifice,
Ceremony and Celebration Joining the World of Spirit and the World of Today
a Work of Years... Stone by Stone
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