Spiritual Development and Faith Awareness

Important cultural and religious holidays
December

• December 8 | Bodhi day (Buddhist) | Commemorates the day Buddha attained enlightenment under a Bodhi tree
• December 15 | Full moon 21 - Litha (Pagan) | (Yule in Northern Hemisphere) | celebrates the summer solstice (longest day of the year)
• December 25 | Christmas (Christian) | commemorates the birthday of Jesus
• December 25 - January 2 | Chanukah (Jewish) | commemorates the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem in 139 BCE. 31– New Moon

For more information, to join the team or to learn more contact Peter Moore at sl.faithawareness@scoutsvictoria.com.au

PAST Religious Events

• January 25 |Full moon | Wolf moon (North mythology) | Buddhist New Year for those from Mahayana Buddhist (North East Asian) countries
• February 10 | Lunar New Year (many East and Southeast Asian countries). Chinese Year of the Dragon. Celebrated with Family gatherings with those from near and far travelling to be with loved ones in time to welcome the new year. There are Lunar New Year festivals across the State during February. Take your Unit to one.
• February 14 | Ash Wednesday (Christian/Catholic) the first day of Lent in the calendar. Lent involves 40 days of fasting and reflection that concludes with Easter.
• February 24 | Chinese Lantern Festival (Yuanxiao) The first full moon of the New Lunar Year and the end of the Chinese New Year (Spring Festival) period.
• March 11 - April 9 | Ramadan (Muslim) – Most auspicious month in the Muslim Calendar. Adherents fast every day from dawn to dusk
• March 19 | Bahai New Year
• March 20 | Mabon (Wicca)(Autumn equinox)
• March 23 | Purim (Jewish) – a day for dressing up and feasting on pastries
• March 25 | Holi (Hindu) – celebrating spring
• March 28 - April 1 | Easter (Western Christianity)
• Vietnamese Hung Vuong Festival | April 19 - May 1 | Held annually on days 8 - 11 of the 3rd lunar month, this festival commemorates the Hung dynasty of circa 2524 before the common era (ie around 4547 years ago). The Hung dynasty is recognised as the founders of Vietnamese civilisation and a source of national pride. It is celebrated as part of ancestral veneration and pilgrimages are made to the Hung king’s temple in Vietnam.
• May 23 | Vesak (Buddhist) | Commemorates Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death
• June 11 | Shavuot (Jewish) | Celebrates Moses’s descent from Mount Sinai with the Ten Commandments
• June 13 | Ascension of Jesus (Orthodox) | Commemorates Jesus Christ's ascension into heaven
• June 14 | The Haj (Islam) | During the Islamic month of Zu Al-Hijja, Muslims from around the world congregate at Mecca, Saudi Arabia (Mohamad’s birthplace). Begins June 14 - 19
• June 17 | Eid al Adha (Islam) | Feast of Sacrifice
• June 28 | Matariki | New year in the Māori lunar calendar
• July 1 | Coming of the light Festival (Torres Strait Islanders) Recalls the 1871 introduction of Christianity to the Torres Strait Islands by the London Missionary Society, when they arrived initially on Erub Island. Ideas for the event can be found here.
• July 6 | New Moon
• July 7 | Al Hijri (Islamic New Year). This month is the second holiest month in the Islamic year after Ramadan.
• July 7 - 14 |  NAIDOC week (National Aboriginal and Torre Strait Islanders Day Observance Committee). An annual period to celebrate the world’s oldest culture, its history and the community’s achievements. I pay my respect to the elders of the community, both past and present and to all members of our scouting community. For activities your unit can get involved here.
• July 16 | Ashura (Sumni Muslims) – According to their tradition commemorates Noah’s departure from the Ark and the exodus of Moses from Egypt.
• July 16 -17 | Karsa (Mandean New Year) – To find out about the Mandeans go here.
• July 21 | Full moon in Capricorn
• July 21 | Asalha Puja (Dhamma Day) (Buddhist) Celebrates the first sermon delivered by Buddha after his enlightenment. A very important festival for Theravada Buddhists (practitioners predominantly from Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand)
• August 4 | New moon in Leo 9:13pm – time to renew friendships
• August 13 | Tisha B’Av (Jewish)-Commemorating the destruction of the first and second temple in Jerusalem. A sad day of complete fasting.
• August 15 | Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (mainly Catholic) – Assumption is latin for taking up and is the anniversary of Jesus’s mothers death. It is remembered with a special dinner following a period of fasting.
• August 18 | Raksha Bandhan (Hindu) – Last day of the Hindu lunar calendar. One practice is for sisters of all ages to tie a talisman or amulet called the Rakhi around the wrists of their brothers. Last year I shared an activity of making a Rakhi.
• August 18 | Ullambana (Yu-lan-pen in Chinese) (Buddhist) – celebrated by offering prayers to deceased ancestors
• August 20 | Full Moon in Aquarius 4:25am – A time to become creative
• August 26 | Krishna Janmashtami (Hindu) – Celebration of Krishna’s birth. Practices include a celebration festival, reading and recitation of religious texts, dance and enactments of the life of Krishna, devotional singing till midnight (the time of Krishna's birth), and fasting (upavasa), amongst other things
• August 31 | Paryushana (Jainism) – an annual holy event and time to increase one’s spirituality through practices such as meditation, fasting and prayers.
• September 3 | New Moon
• September 5 |  Onam (Hindu) – Harvest festival
• September 6 | Ganesh Chaturthi (Hindu) – Birthday of Lord Ganesha
• September 11 | Enkutatash – New Year (Ethiopia/Eritrea) - Nayrouz – (Coptic New Year)
• September 15 | Mawlib Al-Nabi – Mohammad’s birthday
• September 16-18 | Chuseok – Korean harvest festival
• September 17 | Mid Autumn festival – South East Asia - Tet Trung Thu – Vietnamese Moon festival - Tsukami – Japanese Moon festival
• September 18 | Full moon
• September 22 | Ostara (Wicca/Pagan) – Spring Equinox (Some may celebrate Mabon (Autumn equinox – Northern Hemisphere)
• November 1 | New Moon | Bandi Chhor Divas (sikh) – freedom day – commemorates the release from prison to the sixth Guru
• November 2 | Birth of the Bab (Bahai)
• November 15 | Loy Krantang (Thai) | The eve of the full moon in the 12th month. During the festival, many Thai communities float small lantern boats of offerings as tokens of gratitude toward the Goddess of Water and to seek her forgiveness. - Guru Nanak Gurpurab (Sikh) – The birth of Guru Nanak Gurpurab, the first Sikh guru and the start of Sikhism.
• November 16 | Full moon
• November 30 | St Andrews Day | Celebrated annually in Scotland on November 30 to commemorate St Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland since 1320. He is also the patron saint of Romania, Greece, Russia, Ukraine and Poland. The day is usually celebrated with traditional recitations, cuisine, dancing and singing. 

Spotlight Days

Saints Days
What is a Saints day? Saints Day are annual commemoration day for significant people in Christianity (predominantly Catholic) usually on the anniversary of their death or other significant day. Other religions Bahai, Hindu, Sikh etc. also commemorate significant days of people in their religion.

Vesak
There are different ways of celebrating the holiday. Often the festivities begin with a good 'spring clean' and homes are freshened up and decorated. In the morning, Buddhists visit their temples and give offerings to the monks of food, candles and flowers. There is chanting and praying, incense, music and colour. There may be exciting parades through the streets.

In some areas, there will be a 'Bathing the Buddha' ceremony, with water poured over a statue of Buddha. Special lanterns of paper and wood (sometimes homemade) are hung from houses and trees, along with electric lights and exciting light displays. Caged birds may be released, symbolising the release of sorrows. In China, there may be dragon dances.

Activities for your Units

• • Make a Chinese lantern
  • Make a bean mandela
    
    

September – What’s in a name?
September like many of our month's names is actually Latin. It means the seventh month. The Roman calendar started with the northern spring in March (ie. September is 7 months from March). Later January and February were added.

However, it’s the eighth month in the Chinese lunar year (used by many Asian countries). To confuse things even more, the Jewish holy days are usually in September which the Bible’s book of Numbers calls the seventh month, but this year they will be in October, meaning that this September is the sixth month. It is the third month of the year in the Muslim calendar.

Confused? There are two factors affecting an annual calendar: A. the day of the New Year and B. how months/years are calculated.

• The Western world starts the calendar on 1 January (a random date) and consists of 365 and a quarter days, the period for the earth to rotate around the sun giving us our seasons. (known as a solar calendar)
• The Muslim calendar follows a lunar calendar where a new month starts on every new moon and lasts 12 months. Because the lunar year is around 354 days long, New Year is 11 days earlier than the solar year and consequentially Muslim holy days migrate through the year. The calendar started on July 16, 622.
• The Chinese (Asian) and Jewish calendars are Lunar/Solar calendars. They use the Muslim calendar of changing months every new moon but have a leap year (add a month every so often) to keep the year aligned with the solar year.