St. Expedite I

Following on the distinguished heels of Asclepius II and Hermanubis, Saint Expedite is the patron of our third series mediated through a spirit form. It was constructed after an invocation of Expedite on December 20th, 2018 during the full Gemini Moon in the hour of Mercury, as the Messenger was conjunct Jupiter in Sagittarius on the MC. As always, the chart is in the image gallery for each individual offering.

The co-mingling of Mercurial and Jupiterian currents is the perfect vehicle for Expedite, a way-opening figure who specializes in delivering results with unparalleled speed and masterful efficacy. He is a tremendously powerful spirit favored in hoodoo, conjure, and folk magic circles for his fast and reliable turnaround, in addition to his good nature and relative ease of working.

Much lore surrounds Expedite, and questions about if he is or is not a “real” Catholic Saint abound. The answer is yes, and also no. According to his Wikipedia, Expeditus the man was a Roman centurion in Armenia who died a martyr in April of 303. Captured by enemy soldiers and set for beheading, he decided to convert to Christianity. According to legend, while he was making his decision, the Devil appeared in the form of a crow and advised him to put off his conversion until the next day. Expeditus stomped said crow exclaiming “HODIE!”, meaning “TODAY!” in latin.

In depictions, that phrase is pictured on the cross Expedite holds high in his right hand, while the Devil-crow can be seen under foot squawking “CRAS”, which means “tomorrow”. Note that astrologically speaking, crows are associated with Saturn, the planet representing the longest timeframes and situations of an obstinate, confining nature. Such is contrary to everything St. Expedite stands for, as Patron of the Present, Slayer of Pro(cras)tination, and Way-Finder General — of the Thundering Legions.

Expedite’s left hand bears a palm frond. In astrological correspondences, palm is Mercury ruled and also Solar, but in a Christian context it represents the victory of spirit over flesh as embodied by martyrs, and gives its namesake to Palm Sunday, which was the day of Jesus’ triumphant return to Jerusalem just before the Last Supper.

Saint Expedite was included in Catholic martyrologies from Italy before 1781, but somewhere along the way was dropped as an officially endorsed figure by the Church. His feast day was declared as April 19th, which is still celebrated by hundreds of thousands of people, especially in South America.

The Cult of Expedite has murkier roots. Some say it started in New Orleans, others claim a French convent. Either way, story goes that a statue of a Roman centurion was received in a box marked “Expedite”, which was apparently written to ensure fast passage, but people took it to mean the name of the figure inside. An association between the ex-martyr Expeditus was made, and prayers for intercession were offered and delivered upon. His legend thus spread as quickly as the results he’s famed for producing, and today there are churches and altars dedicated to him throughout the globe.

Expedite is a hot spirit, as demonstrated by the fiery Sagittarian influence in the electional chart for his series. Working with him can have Mars-like side effects in terms of overheating, overstimulation, and trouble sleeping, so I do not recommend keeping Expedite altars in the bedroom (he prefers being stationed by main doorways).

Following his nature, our items dedicated to St. Expedite feature heavily on fiery, quickening spices like chilis, cinnamon, and peppercorns, but also triumphant and luck-enhancing ingredients such as frankincense, golden copal, dragon’s blood, 24k gold, allspice, basil, red clover and High John the Conqueror root. Sweetening and beneficent additions include poundcake, vanilla bean, orange peel, and rose petal. The scents of the series are a combination of sweet and spicy, drawing from a hybrid of his usual offerings and creole influences.

This is the first series featuring hand-painted labels to match the offering glasses, candle jars, and boxes for our full sets.

We welcome back for this series Elizabeth Barrial of Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab and Twilight Alchemy Lab, who has over 30 years of experience in root working and conjure. She brewed up three different ritual perfume oil blends in Expedite’s honor on the same election per her location, which can be worn during Expedite petitions and days where luck and expediency would do well on your side.

Frankincense, dragon’s blood, and golden copal resins were supplied by our friend Jeremy Bechelli at Phytognosis, ultra fine purveyor of ritual materia. We also thank resident Sphere + Sundry astrologer Austin Coppock for his assistance in fine tuning the perfect election to potentiate Expedite’s influence.

So what is Expedite good for?

People most regularly turn to our patron Saint for fast cash, to bring an end to long-running situations and court cases, and invoke his aid in situations that require an immediate turnaround. In that regard, he’s Mr. Magical 911, one of the first spirits to turn to when one finds themselves in desperate need for reliable intercession.

While he’s great in a pinch, he can also be asked to help grow your business, get a job, deliver specific sums of money, sell your house, expedite results from sigil shoals, enhance luck, bring opportunity, and the like. Normally you’d have to traffic with demons for those kinds of results ;)

And the best part? He asks for very little in return…

St. Expedite loves being publicly revered and for his praises to be sung loudly, proudly, and to the high heavens. It’s customary when Expedite delivers on your request(s) to spread the word of his potency and glory, and in such a way, pay his influence forward.

This series was created to honor him using only the highest quality ingredients and sincerest devotion. As with all Sphere + Sundry offerings, detailed instructions for working and a prayer are included with every order.

All praise be to Glorious Expeditus for answering our prayers, now and in our times of need. HODIE!

For information on working with Expedite, including the setup of altars,
giving of offerings, making of petitions, and the like, see this article.

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