The Alchemy of Families and Family Karma
Welcome to the Cancer New Moon 2025. Occurring on Wednesday, June 25, at 3:32 a.m., this one has a lot going on. To a certain degree, it is all well within the normal parameters of what Cancer rules. At this time of year, our focus redirects to our families in some way, and to the Divine Benevolent Mother archetype that lives within each of us. But factor in some of the other planets at play and the fact that the Moon rules the sign of Cancer, and this feels like a Cancer New Moon on steroids. Let’s look at exactly why.
First, let’s look at the normal, the usual, and the customary reasons. Always, when the Sun, the Moon, and the smaller, personal planets move into and through the sign of Cancer, our attention naturally falls to the realms ruled by it. The primary areas ruled by the sign of Cancer are those of home, family, and family dynamics, especially those regarding matriarchs and mother figures. The secondary areas ruled by the sign of Cancer are those of the emotions, especially the stormy seas of our deepest, most powerful ones—the ones that power our conscious and unconscious behavior. Because of that, the driving issues that compel clients to call me this time of year are family issues, family dynamics, and the underlying karma that informs them.
There is no karma like the karma we have with family. Seriously. It is some of the most painful and difficult to address, but absolutely the most rewarding to clear. And, if you extrapolate that, there is no family like that of your country and nation. At any given time, that is the context your family sits in. Not surprisingly, Cancer also rules nations, states, nationalism, as well as the regulations regarding land use and the public policies that comprise our social safety nets.
If that wasn’t enough, America was born on the 4th of July, so the Sun sign of America is Cancer. And if that wasn’t enough, American governments (federal, state, county, and city) operate on a July 1 to June 30 fiscal year. As a result, in normal years, the focus on family and family karma we feel at this time of year is driven in part by a variety of external events, many related to politics and changes in public policy.
This dynamic of current political events influencing our families and family karma has accelerated in recent years, driven in part by a variety of controversial events, including the repeal of Roe, the majority of the George Floyd/Black Lives Matter protests, the War in Ukraine, and Covid. It is hard to imagine, I know, but this year, politics and public policies are a much bigger factor than normal; bigger than what has become normal. Politics and public policy have consequences, and the big, external changes in the way we currently govern ourselves—both legislatively and tacitly—are dominating our families and the way we talk to each other. This, in turn, colors the way we work together to solve our common problems and how we will weather the changes that are coming. This is especially pertinent for those of us with family members who have or may look like they have immigration issues, and/or are reliant on Social Security, the Veterans Administration, Medicare, and Medicaid on the one hand; food banks, Head Start, SNAP, WIC, and school lunch programs on the other.
Fueling the proverbial fierce urgency of now is a quincunx from a retrograde Pluto (ruler of politics, political power, and the strength needed to plumb the depths of one’s psyche and one’s soul) in early Aquarius (ruler of democracy, revolutions, rebellions, and freedom). When you can stay grounded, centered, and calm, you can be more in touch with yourself and others, and you can handle truths about yourself and your family that you are normally reluctant to face, thereby preventing those truths from becoming a problem in the future.
At the most positive psychological level, this transit helps to increase your sense of clarity and inner confidence. The main catalyst is Jupiter. Sitting at 3° Cancer, Jupiter creates a stellium with the Sun and New Moon at 4° Cancer. The addition of Jupiter, ruler of truth, justice, higher ideals, expansiveness, success, worship, and worthiness, broadens that focus. As the largest planet in our solar system, Jupiter, makes everything bigger. Jupiter forces us to use a much wider-angle lens on whatever we are looking at. Right now, it’s our families—the values we share, how that informs our karma with them, and how we solve problems together.
Saturn, ruler of both time and karma is at 1° Aries (ruler of impulsiveness and impatience), forming a hard square to the aforementioned stellium in Cancer. Saturn tends to be rather insistent, so if you are suddenly feeling pushed to address family issues do so. The tricky part is that at any given moment, there are several kinds of families we are dealing with: the families we are born into, the families we marry into, and the families of our choosing—those friends and neighbors, coworkers, clients, and colleagues with whom we cultivate family-caliber bonds. And karma. Each of these areas needs some attention in some way.
During this Cancer New Moon, Pluto is asking us, “Why these folks? Why these souls? What drove me to incarnate here and now with them?” Saturn is asking, “What is my karma with them? What are my rights, roles, and responsibilities? What are my karmic debts and obligations?” And Jupiter is asking, “How can I help? How can I make things better? Raise the vibration?”
The most difficult part of being in a human body on this planet at any time in human history is understanding why you are here. But it seems particularly poignant now. Everyone incarnated at this time for different reasons. The tricky part is remembering what you were thinking and intending when you did. And right now, everyone seems to be having differing levels of comfort and success with their ability to remember, understand, and serve their karmic agendas and obligations. And, no matter how much progress has been and is being made, nobody seems particularly happy about it. Or satisfied. Let’s see if we can fix that.
To a certain degree, this is a problem as old as time. And as such, it is part of why so many philosophies and religions, rituals, and ceremonies evolved the way they did. Granted, these, ummmmmm, interesting times will only compound the problem, like interest on a credit card. By the same token, the Cancer New Moon gives you an exceptional opportunity and some incredible motivation to handle some karma with your nearest and dearest or at least move the proverbial ball down the field.
Especially as you attempt to work with your families to find more sustainable ways of coping, over both the short term and the long haul. Keep in mind, the places where things get hard are reflective of your karma. Now is a time when you can make your home, family, and personal life more secure than ever and guarantee that it will be more of a source of support and comfort. But it is a process. But if you play your cards right, you can make some of the changes you have been trying to make for lifetimes.
In closing, the most important thing to remember is that a New Moon is a chance at a new beginning, especially in the areas of your life that are ruled by the sign involved. You have more opportunities now to heal these things than you have had in the entire past year. Take them. These transits support your domestic life, and during this period, some of your domestic problems should clear up, usually because something new comes to light that helps you straighten things out. By next year, it may be too late for some of you and your family members. No matter what comes up for you in this arena now, no matter how seemingly onerous, random, or weird, in as much as you can, lean into it. Listen to it, roll with it, find the flow of it. Trust that it is an answered prayer. Ask your gods and goddesses, your guides, guardians, angels, and ancestors to guide your thoughts and your actions, your words and your deeds. And if you get stuck, call me.
We’ll figure it out.
Calendar
Below are some of the dates when your opportunities for wizardry, magic, and alchemy will be the greatest,
June 25
New Moon in Cancer
Mercury Retrograde Prelude Period begins
June 26
Mercury moves into Leo
Al-Hijra/Islamic New Year begins at sunset
July 1
Canada Day
July 4
Venus moves into Gemini, Neptune Retrogrades at 2° Aries
Independence Day
July 7
Uranus moves into Gemini
July 10
Full Moon in Capricorn (also known as the Full Buck Moon, Hay Moon, Thunder Moon, Wort Moon, Hungry Ghost Moon)
July 12
Saturn Retrogrades at 01° Aries
July 14
Bastille Day
July 17
Mercury Retrograde Prelude Period ends, Mercury Retrogrades at 15° Leo
July 22
Sun moves into Leo
July 24
New Moon in Leo
