The Grey Matters
June 2022
Table of Contents
1) Apprentice Level-Ups
2) Whitehall Village Days
3) 2022 GSW Conclave
4) Spellcraft 200 Update
5) Core Energy Classes Rename
6) New Class Announcement: Wizardry 101 - Wizardly Perspective
7) Meet Instructor Raven
8) GSW Fundraiser Successful
9) Physical Classes Price Discounted
10) Headmaster's New Book Released
Apprentice Level-Ups
By Grey Matters Staff
We would like to recognize the following hardworking Apprentices who have leveled up recently:
Apprentice Maxillara- Level 5
Apprentice Skywalker - Level 2
Keep up the excellent - and wizardly - work!
Whitehall Village Days
By Provost Nicholas Kingsley
If there is one thing a Wizard loves more then festivals, it's fireworks. Luckily, both will be in healthy supply soon enough here in our adopted home of Whitehall NY!
We're looking forward to this year's Heart of Whitehall festival and even plan to have an information booth to boot! Stop by for some Wizardly conversation, good food and an all around fun time, then stay for a lighting of the night sky!
See you there!
2022 GSW Conclave
By Grey Matters Staff
It is our pleasure to Announce the Second Annual GSW Summer Conclave, located on our Physical Campus at:
123 Poultney st, Whitehall New York. Our 2022 Conclave will begin on:
Friday, July 8th at 5 PM EDT and ends on Sunday, July 10th at 6 PM EDT What does this mean for VGSW and the Moots hosted there? Our physical conclaves are an addition to the things we offer here at GSW for our Apprentices and Magisters. Our Physical Conclaves will not be replacing any existing programs or features enjoyed by members of GSW. Maintaining and improving our Virtual Grounds is important to us and we recognize that VGSW Moots are an important part of our School. Will physical conclaves be a regular occurrence? Yes! The Grey School hosts a Yearly summer conclave on our physical campus in Whitehall NY. As the Conclave grounds are never truly finished, these upcoming weeks will offer an excellent opportunity for Local Apprentices and Magisters alike to earn merits for their Lodge during Conclave Construction Events (CCEs). Be sure to keep an Eye on the Forums for these as each CCE will offer Five Merit points, and perhaps a bit of Pizza, for those who participate. How Long does a Conclave last and how much does it cost to attend? Conclaves last for Three days and are 100% free to attend provided you have an active tuition with the Grey School. Only those actively enrolled may attend Conclaves. Why should I attend a Conclave in real life? While it certainly will not be everyone's cup of tea, We believe that these conclaves provide us all with an opportunity to connect and learn in meaningful ways. Not only this, but Conclaves offer opportunities to host Live workshops, award prizes and trophies, engage in Lodge activities and to build some truly great memories with fellow Wizards. I for one look forward to all the pleasant conversations to come, and if I can find my tea kettle, perhaps even a shared cup of Tea and a story or two! Remember, this Year's events will begin at 5:00 pm Friday July 8th for opening ceremonies and will conclude on Sunday July 10th at 6:00 PM. Schedules for Events and workshops held during the Conclave will be released on the Forums closer to the Date and Physical copies will be handed out to Apprentices and Magisters on arrival. Please do keep in mind that the terrain is rough on the conclave grounds and one should expect rigorous outdoor hiking conditions. Please note that you will need to bring your own camping gear and that only Apprentices and Magisters who are actively Enrolled will be allotted access to the grounds. Some Important things to Note: The terrain is ROUGH, be sure of your footing and be smart! Bring Boots and your outdoor kit! Tent spaces are roughly 5 feet wide and 6 feet long, plan accordingly. There is nowhere on the property for RVs or Camping Vehicles. The Conclave Grounds are on top of a hill, which means there will be a potent hike to reach it. Don't pack too heavy or be willing to make more than one trip up the mountain. Pack it in, take it out. As Wizards you are expected to leave a space nicer than when you found it and this expectation applies on our school grounds and out in the Village. Parking is on a first come first serve basis when in regards to the Manor's parking lot.
Spellcraft 200 Update
By Dean Adservio
Well met Wizards one and All,
It is my pleasure to say that The class "Spellcraft'' (Level 2, 3 Credits) has been updated and improved to match the current Academic standards and arcane curriculum one expects from GSW. If you have already completed this class, it is strongly encouraged that you take a moment to review the new material which can be found by viewing the Spellcraft Course in your completed classes list. As always, we endeavor to explore the reaches of esoteric understanding and unveil the mysteries along the way. Spellcraft will introduce Wizards to: The Models of Magick, How magick works under these Models, How to create spells under a specific Model, How to troubleshoot one's magickal workings, Culminating with an exploration of Multi-Model Spellcraft as well as a spell to utilize your GSW Lodge Egregore! As before, Spellcraft is a required course for all Apprentices, however it has now been moved from level 3, to level 2, with Magickal Tools taking its place in level 3. This change has been made as it was felt to better understand the concepts of magick in later levels, this foundational class should be provided earlier in the course of one’s academic journey. Please enjoy this brief preview and We look forward to seeing you in full class soon!
Spellcraft Class Preview:
Lesson 1: Learning to Spell
Many types of magick used by wizards and other magickal practitioners involve the casting of “spells.” A spell is an organized act of magick designed and performed to alter probabilities in the direction desired; simply put, probability enhancement. Before we get ahead of ourselves, let's cover a few helpful terms we’ll be using in this class.
Terms of Note
In discussions of spellcraft, the following terms will be used.
Reagent: A component used in spellcraft.
Correspondence: Something which symbolizes or represents something else. See lesson 2 for more details.
Statement of Intent: A formal statement expressing your desired outcome in a spell.Spell: An organized act of magick designed and performed to alter probabilities in the direction desired
Ritualistic Action: A planned and intentional action performed during a spell to symbolically represent the manifestation of your goal.
Work Space: The area in which a spell will be performed.
Spirit: Any non-corporeal intelligence or force.
The Models of Magick
If you reviewed the video content in “Wizardry 100: Becoming an Apprentice,” then you should already be somewhat familiar with the Models of Magick. The Models of Magick serve to explain the operation and mechanics of the various types of magick found in the world today.
The Three Models of Magick are:
The Psychological Model: This Model concerns magick which works by altering consciousness, awareness, perception, attitude, emotions, and the like. The effects of the Psychological Model often only influence the psyche. Spells operating under this model affect change by instigating mental change. These changes occur internally and can then manifest as external changes in the world at large.
The Spiritual Model: This Model concerns magick which works by enlisting the assistance of one or more noncorporeal (lacking physical form) intelligences or forces, who may take on many forms and guises. From Gods to land spirits and Fae to the Self, spells that operate under this model affect change by means of an external intelligence or force.
The Resonance Model: This model explores magicks that work by accumulating items, objects, and circumstances. Under this model, one organizes items in line with their correspondences such that their unique resonances work in harmony to affect change.
The spells you design and perform will fall under one, if not all, of these models. It is vital for you, as a Wizard, to have a working understanding of these models. A spell that is designed to operate under the Psychological Model, for example, will only affect the minds and perceptions of the people who are subject to it. Knowing which model will work best for the situation at hand is a valuable tool in your mental Wizard’s Kit!
Core Energy Classes Rename
By Dean Adservio
Greetings, one and all! You should be aware that "Core Energy Practices 101 A: Centering & Grounding" and "Core Energy Practices 102 D: Cleansing, Shielding, and Meditating" have been renamed to "Core Energy Practices 100: Centering & Grounding" and Core Energy Practices 101: Cleansing, Shielding, and Meditating". All that's changed is the name; if you're enrolled in the class already, you'll notice no difference.
New Class Announcement: Wizardry 101 - Wizardly Perspective
By Dean Adservio
Greetings and well met, Apprentices! I have the pleasure of announcing the addition of a new class - Wizardry 101: Wizardly Perspective (L1, 2c) - to the Grey School's Wizardry Department. This class replaces "Foundations of Magick" from the same Department. While some of the content may look familiar if you took the old class, it has been expanded on in some places while extraneous content has been removed. The new "Wizardry 101" is now a more streamlined experience that leads the Apprentice just beginning their studies to learn not only how to listen like a Wizard, but how to ponder and see like a Wizard as well. In Wizardry 101: Wizardly Perspective, you will learn how to:
Define basic terms relevant to wizardly perception and understanding
Listen like a Wizard
Understand the types of seeing and how a Wizard uses both
Understand the importance of Perspective, Reverence, and Humility
See clearly through illusions
Class Preview The ultimate goal of science is to discover a single grand “Theory of Everything,” one where all the pieces of all the different puzzles can be assembled into one giant picture, with no pieces left over. Scientists call this idea The Unified Field Theory, but they still haven’t worked it out. The main problem is including and accounting for Life and Consciousness, and so far there are no equations for this. Wizards see patterns where others do not. In 1831, Charles Darwin looked at the variety of finches in the Galapagos Islands and saw the pattern of the evolution of life as a branching tree. In 1953, James Watson, Francis Crick, Maurice Wilkins, and Rosalind Franklin looked at organic nucleic acids and conceived the double spiral pattern of the DNA molecule. All this is to say, Wizards perceive more than one "reality." The world is made of many perceptions, points of views and subtle understandings which culminate in what we see as the World at large. Indeed it is fair to say that there are worlds within worlds behind worlds beyond worlds! Overlaid upon the "normal" world, a Wizard may also perceive the worlds of Potential, Imagination, and the Dreaming. However, sometimes our minds can get overly enthusiastic, and we perceive patterns that aren’t really there. In 1877, Giovanni Shaparelli looked at markings on the surface of Mars and his mind organize them into a pattern of lines, which became famous as “the Martian canals.” Only when we sent Mariner space probes to Mars to take photos we discovered that there were no canals there at all. No lines were found of any kind, just craters, lava fields, mountains, and deserts, similar to those on the Moon. We also found red iron rust, polar ice caps, enormous volcanoes, vast canyons, and ancient riverbeds—and even frozen oceans of ice just beneath the surface. Your Wizard’s Journal can be a potent tool in aiding you to discover things that are, and are not by keeping track of your experiences and observations. The Observations we made in Wizardry 100 regarding the Sync waves you experienced are a great example of this in action. Through our Journal, we can look back over past events, and determine whether or not a pattern exists, is forming, or if things were mere happenstance.
Meet Instructor Raven
By Provost Nicholas Kingsley
The Grey School of Wizardry is glad to introduce one of our newest Instructors, Instructor Raven Shadowhawk!
Instructor Jim "Raven" Stefanowicz is a Pagan Priest, Wizard, and Psychic Reader based in Philadelphia, PA. A member of the Church of All Worlds, Raven believes that everything is alive and interconnected, and strives each day to embrace the teachings of nature and the divinity therein. What's more,Raven is the Founder and High Priest of the "South Street Circle," a Neo-Pagan ritual group that serves to build and maintain fellowship within the Philly Pagan Community at large, and he is also the organizer of Philly's first, "Samhain Witches Ball." A life-long ritualist, Raven serves on the Board of Directors for Philadelphia Pagan Pride in his role of ritual coordinator, and frequently performs Rites of Passage within his community. In addition to this, Raven is an initiate within the Ash, Birch, and Willow Tradition of Witchcraft, and holds a 2nd Degree within the Cabot Academy of Witchcraft in Salem, MA. His writings have been featured in Green Egg Magazine, "Brigid's Light," the "Cabot Kent Hemetic Temple Newsletter," and in two of Headmaster Oberon's books. On that tomeish note, he is currently working on his own upcoming book, "Cernunnos: Walking the Path of the Antlered God," a devotional manual that explores the lore of the Antlered God of Gaul, providing ritualistic methods through which to deepen one's connection to him. Please join me in welcoming our New Faculty member to the GSW Family!
GSW Fundraiser Successful
By Grey Matters Staff
Currently, our efforts are underway to construct the physical campus dorms here at GSW! While much has been done, some work yet remains to see things finished. When the project is completed, the cottage will be able to house eight, include a wood stove, and have space to be used as a classroom. To see this project finished in a timely manner however, it is something which is best suited to that age-old magick of Wizardry- Community. As it stands, the School has set aside $1000 to work on physical campus projects. Due to recent increases in cost, this does not go as far as it once did... Indeed, a dumpster for the project cost nearly $500! This has left us with a remaining budget of $500 which sadly is not enough to see the facilities here at the campus finished in time for summer classes, or our summer conclave.
Luckily, Arthur and I know our way around a bit of building and so construction is well in hand! Because of this we are also able to put things together piece by piece and enchant them with intention, as well as an additional spell here or there for good measure. Truly, we seek to craft a Wizard's sanctum for all who stay here during their classes. As with all great works of magick, no one Wizard can field such a feat alone. And so it is we turn to our community that we might, together, see this dream made real. We are seeking to raise the rest of the funds necessary to see this project made a reality and manifest this space into being. To this end, a fundraiser was been started to raise the $1500 needed to secure the materials required to see this happen.
Within just a few hours, that goal was not only met but exceeded! Out generous donors have so far raised $2002; rest assured that all of that extra money will be used to make this into a most excellent Wizardly space.
Several of our supports have chosen to remain anonymous. However, we would like to thank:
Apprentice Fyrhth
Apprentice Malcorr Greyseeker
Apprentice Luxx
Apprentice Malik
Apprentice Iris Indun
Physical Classes Price Discount
By Grey Matter Staff
In gratitude for the generosity shown towards the fundraiser for the GSW Cottage on the Physical Campus, the price of physical classes will be reduced from $250 to $200 for this year.
Headmaster's New Book Released
By Headmaster Oberon Zell
Dear Friends,
Happy Earth Day!
Synchronously, my latest and most significant book—GaeaGenesis: Conception & Birth of the Living Earth—is finally published—today! Check it out on Amazon.
This epic 438-page book has been over 50 years in the making! Since my original “TheaGenesis” vision on Sept. 6, 1970, I have written many articles on Gaea, given countless interviews, talks and workshops, and created much art (including my signature “Millennial Gaia” statue). And I have read dozens of books on “Gaia Theory” as they have come out (there are 178 references in the Bibliography!). I have been collecting and compiling these materials for five decades, with the intention of eventually putting it all into a book. And finally I have!
Profusely illustrated by me and others, and edited by Haleigh Isbill, this book is the most comprehensive presentation ever assembled on the universal age-old paradigm of Mother Earth as the living planet in whose vast body we are cells. This book is my literary Magnum Opus, as my “Millennial Gaia” statue it illustrates is my artistic Masterwork.
Please turn everyone you know onto this book, and tell them that a hardcover version will be coming soon, and they can order GaeaGenesis directly from my publisher at: www.BlackMoonPublishing.com
Paperback: $25.00 Hardcover: $40.00
Thank you, and Never Thirst!
Thou Art God/dess,
~OZ