Earth Services

What is the FCUUPS Earth Service?

What to Expect

• We take time for reflection and contemplation through a moment of meditation or chanting.
• The central theme of the standard services coincides with an introduction to the upcoming sabbat, or the Wheel of the Year calendar event. (See the Annual Celebrations section.)
• We open by calling upon the quarters and casting a circle. Then, releasing and closing the circle at the end.
• Starting June 2025, guest speakers and facilitators will be taking the lead during some services to introduce many of the other paths that are followed at FCUUPS. We call these months Path Services.
• You’ll hear about how the cosmos alignment(s) relate to the topic of the month through astrology (or other divination method).
• Last but often everyone’s favorite is the physical (ritual) component of our standard service. The Spell! This is when we get crafty and create a talisman or other item to embue with our energies with a specific focus.

Earth Centered Service Format

The below components are part of the format used to facilitate the standard Earth Centered Service. Our goal is to provide a collaborative element based spiritual celebration. Use this page during the service to follow along or to participate in the service by taking on a part. (i.e., reading an invocation)

About FCUUPS

Frederick CUUPS is a member of the national Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS), supporting Pagan-identified UUs through education, interfaith dialogue, and the development of Earth-centered spiritual practices.
We honor the UU 7th Principle—respect for the interdependent web of all existence—and support those seeking a life in balance with nature by exploring diverse Pagan and Earth-based traditions.
Aligned with UUCF, National CUUPS, and the UUA’s principles, we promote personal integrity, diversity, compassion, and spiritual education.

Read more about FCUUPS →

Land Acknowledgement

We acknowledge that we gather on the ancestral, unceded lands of the Piscataway people, who have lived here for over 800 years and remain vital to our community. Other Native peoples, including the Seneca, Delaware, Coney, Tuscarora, Shawnee, and Susquehanna, also lived in this region long before us. You can support Indigenous communities by donating to organizations like Indigenous Women Rising, advocating for equitable, culturally safe health care and education for Native and Indigenous peoples.

Invocations

(Deity) Volunteer says: “Oh Great Ones who dwell beyond veil and flame. Guardians of the Earth, of Water, Fire, and Air. The Ancient and Eternal, known by many names. Your children look to you once again. We call you now with reverence and heart laid bare. We bid you Hail and Welcome.”
All say: “Hail and Welcome”

Celestial Divination (Astrology)

June Energies & Shadow Work: A Time for Inner Healing

Each month a co/facilitator researches how astrology relates specifically to the information and ritual being performed during the service. Our next service focuses on healing and shadow work.

Shadow work is essentially the courageous process of healing from the inside out. It involves:

• Making the unconscious conscious — allowing ourselves to see and accept all parts of who we are, even the “bad bits” we’d rather ignore.
• Taking responsibility — acknowledging our traits, habits, wounds, and coping mechanisms, no matter how flawed they may be.
• Learning to manage or transform those parts in ways that reduce harm to ourselves and others.

This deep inner work is arguably the most important kind of healing we can do. And this June, the cosmos offers timely support for this process.

June 8 – Mercury enters Cancer
Mercury’s shift into this emotional water sign invites us to reflect, remember, and reconnect—with ourselves and others. You may feel more nostalgic or introspective. It’s a beautiful time to embrace memories, tend to your inner world, and protect your mental peace. Let yourself soften. Let yourself feel.

June 17 – Mars enters Virgo
As Mars moves into detail-oriented Virgo, the urge to fix, perfect, or critique—especially ourselves—might intensify. Your work here means noticing those perfectionist tendencies without letting them rule us. Channel this energy into productive self-care: move your body, attend to your health, or refine your routines. Be gentle with the inner critic.

June 25 – New Moon in Cancer
Cancer’s gentle energy during this New Moon invites you to plant emotional roots and trust your intuition. Your feelings hold wisdom—listen closely. Let this be a turning point: what do you need to feel safe, loved, and whole? Set intentions that reflect your emotional truth.

Releasing

Future Standard Service Topics

---

Annual Celebrations

Ritual and celebration names. Why are the different?
We strive to make all FCUUPS events as accessible as possible. The Wheel of the Year names in wider Pagan culture are specific to Celtic and Wiccan traditions. Our yearly rituals are named in honor of the astronomical and agricultural cycles in order to support a wider array of Pagan religious paths.

---

Path Service Schedule & Details

The term and process of Shadow Work are modern adaptations of the work of Carl Jung. Jung was a psychiatrist/psychotherapist in the early 1900s and is credited as the creator of analytical psychology. While never using the term Shadow Work as it is used in today’s society, Jung introduced the concept of the shadow, golden shadows, integration and collective consciousness. Today Shadow Work is used to help learn more about who we are, healing past traumas, and integrating our shadows to become “whole not perfect”. 

Expand for more information about Shadow Circle…

The Shadow Work circle meets on the second Tuesday of the month at 7pm here at UUCF. We spend the first portion of the session with a focused discussion on a specific topic. The rest of meeting time is used for checking in and sharing where we are on our personal journeys with our work. We offer support and a safe space to explore what working with our shadows means to us and what our individual processes are like. Each attendee is given a period of time (determined by the number of attendees) to share. If there is time after everyone has shared, we open things to casual conversation.

Two times a year ( October and a spring session) we spend the session journeying to meet with our shadows and/or guides in preparation for the work of the coming season. One to two times a year a 101 is offered as the Tuesdays night sessions are not workshops. A recorded version of the 101 is in process but not complete as of yet.

Renee can be reached at healingintheshadows@gmail.com

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

Becoming an Earth Service Volunteer

Have you been attending services and considering taking on a role within the community? Volunteering to co-facilitate Earth Services is a great way to dip your toes in the water and serve the FCUUPS community. Tasks to assist may include:

• Setting up and tearing down the room (also cleaning if necessary).
• Distributing invocation roles to willing participants and facilitating that part of the service.
• Researching service themes and/or topics.
• Planning a ritual that coincides with the theme/topic of the service.

If you’re ready, or just want more information, talk with Willow and Starfire at the next Sunday Earth Service.