A Feral Church: A Guided Journey to Find Magic, Kinship, and the Goddess

by H. Byron Ballard

Overview

Journey into the wilderness within yourself using this book's series of guided meditations.

H. Byron Ballard guides you through the uncharted and feral lands of your imagination, where you will connect to the primal mother—the Goddess. Ballard shows you how to leave your domesticated world and enter a place of wild worship and joy, a feral church that is not bound by dogma or liturgy.

Your search for the ancient and wild connection to the Goddess will take you to places familiar and unknown, both internal and external. Each chapter features a guided pathworking and a reflection to help you evaluate what you discovered on your journey. This book empowers you to step into the darkness, reconnect with your ancestors and various spirits, and emerge ready to live your fullest life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780738776361
Publisher:	Llewellyn Worldwide, LTD.
Publication date:	01/08/2025
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

H. Byron Ballard, BA, MFA (Asheville, NC) is a western NC native, teacher, folklorist, and writer. She has served as a featured speaker and teacher at several festivals and conferences, including the Sacred Space Conference, Pagan Spirit Gathering, Starwood, Hexfest and many others. She serves as senior priestess and co-founder of Mother Grove Goddess Temple and the Coalition of Earth Religions/CERES, both in Asheville, NC. She podcasts about Appalachian folkways on "Wyrd Mountain Gals." Her essays are featured in several anthologies and she writes a regular column for SageWoman Magazine. Find her online at www.myvillagewitch.com.

Editorial Reviews

"A transformative journey that encourages readers to delve deep into themselves and uncover hidden aspects of their being."
—Jen Sankey, author of Enchanted Forest Felines Tarot

"An intense work by a proven guide to the otherworlds that exist right here alongside our own."
—Angie Buchanan, spiritual director of Earth Traditions

"Spiritual, magical, and completely original, this is one you don't want to miss."
—Deborah Blake, author of The Everyday Witch's Coven

"Byron sends us off into the Wilds to reclaim our souls and rebirth a world of visceral relationship with all that is."
—Eryn Schrader, host of the Plant Witch podcast

"This book reads like a giant embrace from the arms of the Goddess Herself."
—Trista Hendren, editor of Girl God Books

"A heartfelt and richly imaginative collection of journeys to take you into the heart of the Goddess and deeper into yourself."
—Levi Rowland, author of Mother: Ecstasy, Transformation, and the Great Goddess

"The most empowering work I've ever read...It's a journey that will lead you to places both familiar and unknown."
—Dorothy Morrison, author of The Craft

"Ballard tenderly holds the visions of the Divine Feminine through the different representations of Her in various faith and spiritual traditions."
—Rev. Jerrie Hildebrand, President Emerita, Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans

"This book will passionately and purposefully work you into a deeper understanding of the crossroads at which we stand while illuminating hope and imagination."
—Patricia Ballentine, priestess, artist, writer

"Byron guides us into personal encounters with the Goddess."
—Diotima Mantineia, author of Touch the Earth, Kiss the Sky

"Byron nudges us to feel the magic in the most mundane, in the stories, lore, mythology, and archetypes...She beautifully describes the timelessness in our world."
—Tanja Bara, writer, teacher, Tanja's Shadow and Light

"An accessible, lyrical pathworking through the Wheel of the Year...Ballard holds a lantern on the wild way of returning to ourselves."
—Rebecca Beyer, author of Wild Witchcraft

"Each meditative journey explores the wild and untamed aspects of the Goddess and oneself."
—Mat Auryn, author of Psychic Witch

"Through this exquisite narrative, we find ourselves immersed on a journey into Goddess and nature."
—Rev. Laura González, priestess and host of the podcast Lunatic Mondays

"Ballard is uniquely and distinctly qualified to give birth to this prophetic book of thealogy."
—Rev. Sara Scruggs, writer, pastor UMC

"Ballard gives us a series of meditations that take us on a journey like no other."
—Christine Ashworth, author of Scott Cunningham: The Path Taken

"It is a deeply personal book and the author's mind, heart, and divine spark are unveiled and fully present."
—Ivo Dominguez, Jr., teacher, author, Pagan organizer

"Ballard offers us a way through uncharted territory...This book may just be the tool we need to smash through layers of oppression to find liberation for all."
—Rev. Lisa Bovee-Kemper, Interim Minister, UU Community of Charlotte

"Ballard explores the questions and experiences that help center our minds."
—Constance Tippett, artist, creator of Goddess Timeline

From the Publisher