* 7/1: Day endangered species became internationally protected (1975); day to celebrate all the world's creatures.
* 7/2: Visitation Day--Christian feast marking St. Elizabeth's recognition of Blessed Mary's divine destiny as catalyst for human liberation and redemption.
* 7/4: U.S. Independence Day--Day to celebrate the right of all peoples to exercise peaceful, democratic self-determination.
* 7/4: Death day of Thomas Jefferson (1826), who ensured that the U.S. Constitution would protect basic rights and liberties. A Deist, he practiced a religion that was based on Nature, reason, and ethics.
* 7/5 (11:00 a.m. EDT): Earth Aphelion--when the Earth is farthest from the Sun.
* 7/6: Mindfulness Day--Zen Buddhist day for being mindful that alienation and hunger for possessions results from ignorance of interconnectedness.
[caption id="attachment_6117" align="alignleft" width="150"]
Dalai Lama[/caption]
* 7/6: Birthday of Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama.
* 7/7: Tanabata--Shinto rite honoring the Kami of the Stars.
* 7/8 (3:14 a.m. EDT): New Moon.
* 7/8 to 7/11: Iroquois Green Bean Ceremony--in thanksgiving for the bean harvest; celebrated with singing, drumming, dancing, and feasting.
* 7/8 eve to 8/7 eve: Ramadan--Muslim month of purification by self-reflection, fasting from sunrise to sunset, peace-making, and helping those in need. The Five Pillars of Islam are confession, prayer,
[caption id="attachment_6122" align="alignright" width="168"]
Quran, Ramadan[/caption]
alms-giving, fasting, and pilgrimage.
* 7/12: Birthday of Henry David Thoreau (1817), Transcendentalist and naturalist who believed in individualism and living simply in harmony with Nature.
* 7/13 to 7/15: Obon--Zen Buddhist festival honoring departed ancestors.
* 7/14: Old Egyptian birthday feast of Neter Osiris - partner and true love of Isis, and father of Horus; guide of all husbands, fathers, and judges.
* 7/14 to 7/25 (I 7/25): Old Norse/Icelandic Mid-Summer Althingi--Community gathering for democratic decision making. Forseti and Tyr, Gods of Justice and Self-Sacrifice, were honored.
* 7/14 eve to 8/19 eve (7/28 peak): Delta Aquarid Meteor Showers.
[caption id="attachment_6118" align="alignleft" width="236"]
Isis[/caption]
* 7/17: Old Egyptian birthday feast of Neteret Isis - partner and true love of Osiris, and mother of Horus; guide of all wives, mothers, healers, advocates, and teachers.
* 7/19 to 7/26: Chinese Buddhist festival of Kuan Yin/Kannon/Tara, Supreme Goddess of Nature and Perfect Buddha of many emanations; celebrates Her enlightenment and Her bodhisattva vow to help all sentient beings.
* 7/19 to 8/1: Old Egyptian festival marking the return to Egypt of Neteret Isis, Neter Osiris, and the rains that inundate the Nile River.
* 7/22 (2:15 p.m. EDT): Full Moon (Mother Moon).
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Mary Magdalene[/caption]
* 7/22: Christian feast of St. Mary Magdalen, disciple and priestess--Savior Jesus made her His priestess by purifying her seven times; she anointed Him in preparation for His sacrifice and witnessed His torture, death, and resurrection.
* 7/23: Beginning of Leo (the Lion/Lioness).
* 7/23: Mayan Sun Festival--honoring Sun God Ahau Kin; celebrated with devotional offerings of food, song, prayer, and a ritual procession that symbolically travels to the four quarters of the Universe.
* 7/23 eve to 7/24 eve: Synoikia--Old Greek festival celebrating the peaceful cooperation of states. Offerings were made to Aphrodite and Eirene, Goddesses of friendship and peace.
* 7/26: Christian feast of St. Anna, mother of Blessed Mary and grandmother of Blessed Jesus; guide of grandmothers and elderly women.
* 7/26: Birthday of Dr. Carl Gustav Jung (1875), founder of archetypal psychology, which explores universal concepts of Deity and their relation to the individual psyche.
* 7/29 eve to 8/17 eve (8/12 peak): Perseid Meteor Showers.
* 7/30 eve to 8/5 eve: Panathenaea--Old Greek festival of Goddess Athena - as daughter of Wisdom (Goddess Metis) and font of reason.
* 7/31 eve to 8/2 eve: Lughnasadh--Old Celtic/Irish Feast of Goddess Tailtiu and God Lugh (Deities of Sustenance and Light).
* 7/31 eve to 8/7 eve: Mid-Summer/First Harvest/Lammas--Festival of thanksgiving for the first of the grain harvest; celebrated by offering the first fruits of the grain harvest and prayers for sustenance for all.
Excerpted fromTHE MYSTIC'S WHEEL OF THE YEAR 2013A Multifaith Calendar Reflecting Eco-Egalitarian Spirituality© 2012 Marija Miovskiwww.WheeloftheYear.com
