Way back in March of 2008 the town of Greece, New York had a problem. Americans United had decided to bring litigation against the Town Board for a policy of starting their meetings almost exclusively with sectarian Christian prayers. Hoping to avoid losing a lawsuit, the Town Board threw open their doors to any religion that wanted to give an opening prayer, even if they were Pagans.

“[Greece deputy town supervisor Jeff] McCann said the town has long used a list of worship services published in a local newspaper to extend invitations to local clergy for the meetings. The list offers little diversity, he said, and the town has had difficulty locating people from nontraditional faiths who may not have a physical church building they attend. “Now that the issue has gotten some publicity, we’ve had people call up and say they have an interest in delivering a prayer,” he said, adding that nonclergy, the nonreligious and anyone else who wishes to speak the pre-meeting prayer is welcome. “If a private person wants to come and say a prayer, they can come and do it.” Indeed, he said, next month’s Wiccan prayer was initiated by local resident Jennifer Zarpentine, who called town offices to ask whether she would be welcome at a meeting.”

So local resident Jennifer Zarpentine did indeed give an opening invocation in Greece, making her re-think the issue of sectarian prayers now that she was included.

“In just a few seconds’ time during the April Town Board meeting, Jennifer Zarpentine made Greece history. Zarpentine, a Wiccan, delivered the first-ever pagan prayer to open a meeting of the Greece Town Board. Her hands raised to the sky, she called upon Greek deities Athena and Apollo to ‘help the board make the right informed decisions for the benefit and greater good of the community.’ A small cadre of her friends and coven members in the audience chimed in ’so mote it be … Zarpentine said she was pleased by the opportunity to pray at the meeting. ‘I thought the invocation went well,’ she said. ‘The board was respectful;, they all bowed their heads.’ As far as the lawsuit goes, Zarpentine said the town isn’t being discriminatory. ‘They are including everybody,’ she said. ‘They asked me.’”

Americans United were, naturally, unmoved by the town of Greece’s recent inclusiveness, so litigation moved forward. This past Thursday Americans United and the town of Greece (represented by the right-wing Alliance Defence Fund) gave their arguments to a judge and are now awaiting a summary judgement in about six weeks.

“In the hour-long hearing, Richard R. Katskee, assistant legal director for Americans United, argued that the plaintiff is concerned not with prayer before the meetings but with sectarian prayers that have dominated the practice since Auberger started it in 1999. According to court papers, of 104 prayers from 1999 through 2007, none were non-Christian. Since the lawsuit was filed, the majority of the prayers have been Christian, with one being delivered by a Wiccan priestess and two others by non-clergy. Katskee stressed that the plaintiff is not against Christian prayer, but that the prayers have been aimed at one sect … Joel Oster, a senior litigation counsel for Colorado-based Alliance Defense Fund that is representing Greece, said that it is not right to ask the town to police the clergy. “It is not the town’s place to tell the clergy what to say,” Oster said. “It would cause a nightmare for the town.” Auberger has said that the town’s practice is to have an open invitation to any Greece resident to contact the town about giving the prayer.”

So now we’ll find out if a legal fig-leaf in the form of a single sectarian Wiccan prayer (amidst a hundred Christian prayers to Jesus) can aid this New York town and their socially conservative legal team overcome the AU and some pretty strong legal precedents in their favor. Will Greece’s “include a Wiccan” gambit work? Or will they be forced to switch to non-sectarian prayers? In about six weeks we get to find out.

Jacob Davis, a Wiccan student at Southeastern Local Schools in Ohio, challenged the traditional Christian clergy-led prayer at his school’s graduation ceremony, saying he’d prefer a moment of silence instead.

“Traditionally, the school has had a reverend deliver an invocation and benediction at the ceremony, but the practice recently was challenged by senior Jacob Davis. Davis, who raised his concerns in a Letter to the Editor at the Chillicothe Gazette, had conducted a petition of classmates for a moment of silence instead, gathering about 44 signatures. Principal Leonard Steyer was prepared to make a decision about the prayer Friday when he received a copy of a letter faxed to the district Thursday by a staff attorney for Americans United for the Separation of Church and State … Davis, a practicing Wiccan, said he is uncomfortable being asked to participate in a Christian prayer at his graduation, and contends the tradition violates separation of church and state provisions. “I think the best thing to do is have no other prayer,” Davis said … Davis indicated a student-led prayer wouldn’t bother him (even though he wouldn’t partake) because the student would be exercising his or her right to free speech.”

Davis was supported by the Lady Libery League and Americans United in his request, and it looks like his efforts were successful because Superintendent Brian Justice announced yesterday that no clergyperson will give an invocation or benediction.

“Southeastern High School graduates will not have a clergyperson delivering an invocation and benediction at their ceremony. Superintendent Brian Justice explained Wednesday he and the board are not anti-prayer, but are obliged to follow the law. “We will not violate the laws … (I and) my board of education believe in prayer, but we’re not for violating the law. Are we happy about it? No,” Justice said. Issues over the school’s tradition were raised by senior Jacob Davis, a practicing Wiccan, who felt the prayer violated the law and provisions for the separation of church and state. Davis issued his concerns through a letter to the editor to the Chillicothe Gazetteabout two weeks ago before speaking with administrators, Justice said.”

This most likely won’t eliminate prayer at the ceremony, no doubt one of the student speakers will decide to invoke Jesus or God during their time on-stage, but Davis has managed to remove school-sponsored public (Christian) prayer. Further, Davis has proven that only by speaking out and risking criticism and mockery (and I can only imagine some of the hate-mail Davis will be receiving in the weeks to come) can you effect the change you want to see in the world. Before now no one bothered to do anything about the school-sponsored clergy-led invocations and benedictions, it was considered a “tradition” and one that even non-Christian students probably didn’t give much thought to. But thanks to Davis the lulling refrain of “this is how we’ve always done it” has been challenged and the assumption of Christian adherence removed from the school’s functions. Speaking out may not always get you what you want right away, but sometimes merely speaking out (and a faxed letter from Americans United) does work.

One of the more peculiar legal arguments I’ve heard is that the history of cultural Christian dominance in America makes public displays of the cross effectively “secular” and therefore exempt from Church-State concerns.That was the opinion of a judge in Utah last year concerning memorial road markers (currently being appealed), and it has emerged again over the issue of the Mt. Soledad cross in San Diego.

Litigation over the 43-foot-tall Mt. Soledad cross has been under way for nearly 20 years. Several federal courts have ruled against its display on city property. In an effort to save the cross, the federal government acquired the land underneath the cross in 2006. Legal action proceeded against the federal government’s ownership of the towering religious symbol. In July of 2008, U.S. District Judge Larry Alan Burns ruled that the cross “communicates the primarily non-religious messages of military service, death and sacrifice” and can remain on public property.

Unsurprisingly, Americans United (along with other groups) have asked the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn this decision. They claim, sensibly enough, that a multi-religious military and nation cannot be symbolized by a Christian cross.

“American service personnel come from many different faiths and some follow no spiritual path at all,” said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. “It is disrespectful to our deceased veterans to use the symbol of only one faith to memorialize them all” … “That the cross is used in a veterans’ memorial here does not make it secular,” asserts the brief. “In fact, as a burial marker, the cross has been used almost exclusively for Christian burials in order to convey a sectarian message that the deceased lived and died as a member of a particular Christian community. And as a monument in a veterans’ memorial, the cross conveys a similar sectarian message: that only fallen Christian soldiers are being remembered. Given the ‘commanding presence’ of the Mt. Soledad cross in relation to the rest of the memorial, the primary message that this cross communicates is religious, not secular.”

Even if every body buried in that site were Christian (leaving aside the various doctrinal and denominational issues), do Christians really want their cross to become a secular communicator of “non-religious messages”? Further, this “secularization” is a rather recent invention. Until 1989 (when litigation started) it was known as the “Easter Cross” and it was dedicated to “Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ”, which seems to undermine the notion that this is everyone’s non-religious cross-shaped memorial. The “secular” cross is just the latest gambit to circumvent state and federal law. It no more represents and honors Jews, Hindus, Muslims and atheists than the Wiccan pentacle does. To say otherwise undermines the hard work minority religions have undertaken to have their own symbols and traditions properly honored and recognized.

Yesterday U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie issued a preliminary injunction halting the issuing of the Christianity-endorsing “I Believe” license plates in South Carolina. The matter will now have to be resolved in court before the plates can adorn the cars of Christian believers. The move was hailed by Americans United head the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, whose organization is sponsoring the pending litigation.

I don’t see why non-Christians would have a problem with this.

“‘The ‘I Believe’ license plate is a clear example of government favoritism toward one religion,’ said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. ‘The court drove home an important point: South Carolina officials have no business meddling in religious matters.’ … Americans United brought the Summers v. Adams legal challenge on behalf of four local clergy the Rev. Dr. Thomas A. Summers, Rabbi Sanford T. Marcus, the Rev. Dr. Robert M. Knight and the Rev. Dr. Neal Jones as well as the Hindu American Foundation and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.”

Supporters of the cross-emblazoned plates have argued that they are legal since any religious group can sponsor similarly biased tags, an argument that quickly falls apart when you speak to local officials about what exactly counts as a religion.

“In South Carolina, Baptists wanted the tag on cars here and pitched the idea to Republican South Carolina Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer’s chief of staff. State Sen. Yancey McGill, a Kingstree Democrat, got the bill passed in a couple of days without even having a public hearing or debate. “It’s a great idea,” McGill said Tuesday, calling it an opportunity to express beliefs. “People don’t have to buy them. But it affords them that opportunity. I welcome any religion tags.” What about Wicca, commonly referred to as witchcraft? “Well, that’s not what I consider to be a religion,” McGill said.”

That sentiment doesn’t just apply to Wiccans of course, Muslims are right out too.

“Asked by a reporter if he would support a license plate for Islam, Rep. Bill Sandifer replied, ‘Absolutely and positively no… I would not because of my personal belief, and because I believe that wouldn’t be the wish of the majority of the constituency in this house district.’”

Judge Cameron McGowan Currie, who is expected to release a written opinion concerning the injunction on Monday, is no stranger to protecting the rights of minority religions. In 2003 the judge ruled in favor of Darla Kaye Wynne, a Wiccan, who was battling against exclusively Christian invocations in the town of Great Falls. There is no word if Currie will also be overseeing the actual trial (though we can all hope). Whomever presides, this case will most likely be litigated for quite some time. South Carolina has become a “hot zone” for battles over church and state issues, and things are just getting warmed up.

On his syndicated radio program Culture Shocks, Barry Lynn, the executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, examines the law banning fortune telling in Montgomery County, Maryland.

“Is an anti-fortune telling rule discriminatory or protective? Pagan witch and shamanic healer, Caroline Kenner joins us…”

Lynn interviews local Pagan activist and organizer Caroline Kenner, and “dirt worshiper” and diviner Diotima Mantineia about the law and its arbitrarily discriminatory nature. They also discuss the current lawsuit against the law brought by Nick Nefedro, who claims the law violates his rights.

“A fortuneteller is suing Montgomery County after he learned he would not be allowed to open a shop in Bethesda because the county bans the business of forecasting the future. Attorneys for Nick Nefedro, previously of Key West, Fla., say county officials violated his First Amendment rights to free speech and discriminated against his “Roma,” or Gypsy, culture when they refused to give him a business license.”

You can listen to the program online, here, or download the entire program. Lynn seems very interested in this case, and promises to write about it at length over at his new blog at Beliefnet. Something tells me we aren’t so far away from some planned civil disobedience and Americans United getting into the legal fray.

Is the Christian cross a secular symbol? That is the current opinion of Utah state officials and U.S. District Judge David Sam. This peculiar notion was reached in 2007, after local atheists challenged the placement of metal crosses along the highway to honor state highway patrol officers who died in the line of duty. Now American’s United, along with the Anti-Defamation League, the Hindu American Foundation, The Interfaith Alliance, and the Union for Reform Judaism, are challenging this ruling.

I don’t know how anyone could think this was religious!

“U.S. District Judge David Sam ruled in November of 2007 that the cross is a “secular symbol of death” and held that Utah officials and the Utah Highway Patrol Association can continue to erect the 12-foot crosses. Americans United is asking the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn the lower court ruling. The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, Americans United executive director, said he is offended by the claim that the cross is merely a secular symbol. “The cross is the preeminent symbol of Christianity,” said Lynn … In its brief, AU points out that the cross has been tied to Christianity for many centuries. “In upholding the display of roadside crosses on public land throughout the State of Utah, the district court embraced the State’s characterization of the cross the clearest and most universally recognized marker of Christianity as nothing more than a ‘secular symbol of death,’” asserts the brief. ‘This conclusion is historically inaccurate, blind to contemporary realities, and offensive to believers and nonbelievers alike.’”

Officials contend that the cross is secular, not religious, and it is being used regardless of the personal religious persuasion of the fallen officer. So atheist, Mormon, Pagan, Jewish or Hindu cops would all get the giant “non-religious” cross as a memorial.

The idea that the cross is “secular” ties into the larger notion that Christian religious expression and tradition, due to its size and ubiquity, is “normal” and ultimately beneficial. The corollary is that non-Christian religious expressions or traditions are “abnormal” and considered suspect. But popularity and tradition doesn’t remove religious context from a religious symbol, instead it subtly reinforces that faith’s dominance and “right” to utter ubiquity. If the cross was truly secular, we wouldn’t have 39 different emblems of belief for military markers and headstones, nor would minority religions fight to have their own symbols added to that list.

There is no “secular symbol of death”, any more than there is a “secular symbol of life”, because a truly secular culture allows groups and individuals to choose and adapt their own symbols and instill them with meaning. When governments and judges start telling us which religious symbols are “secular”, we enter into a hierarchy of signs, where the faith(s) with the strongest cultural hold gains official sanction in all but name. Undermining the idea that government should make no law “respecting an establishment of religion”.

As I have reported previously on this blog, South Carolina is quickly becoming one of the “hot zones” in battles over church and state. You had Wiccan Darla Wynne’s victory over sectarian prayer in Great Falls, the ongoing plan by conservative Christians to legislate around that judgment, and a controversial “I Believe” specialty license plate created solely for Christians about to be approved. So it is troubling to hear that the local chapter of the ACLU has become so dysfunctional that the national organization has swooped in to take over.

“If there is one state that can ill afford an ineffective chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union it arguably is South Carolina … in recent years [the SC ACLU chapter] been hampered by ideological squabbling among its board members, staff leadership turnover, lackluster membership and fundraising numbers and a virtually nonexistent media presence. Aware of the problems for some time, the national ACLU board has decided to step in and try to right the ship. The decision made national news.”

The only comfort here is that with the national ACLU board “driving”, we may see a revitalized ACLU chapter in South Carolina, and greater resources being poured into the looming legal battles developing in the state. Over the years the ACLU has been an important resource for modern Pagans seeking redress against discriminatory or unconstitutional policies and practices. Without the ACLU, and similar organizations like Americans United and the FFRF, many of the seminal legal cases that have helped establish precedents and decisions favoring the growth and free exercise of modern Paganism in America may not have happened.

Of course modern Pagans and church-state separation organizations don’t always see eye to eye. In New York, the town board of Greece is defending its sectarian prayer policy by making the opening prayers inclusive of all faiths. This has allowed a local Wiccan to deliver a sectarian Pagan prayer before a recent board meeting.

“In just a few seconds’ time during the April Town Board meeting, Jennifer Zarpentine made Greece history. Zarpentine, a Wiccan, delivered the first-ever pagan prayer to open a meeting of the Greece Town Board. Her hands raised to the sky, she called upon Greek deities Athena and Apollo to ‘help the board make the right informed decisions for the benefit and greater good of the community.’ A small cadre of her friends and coven members in the audience chimed in ’so mote it be.’”

Americans United, who recently helped win the veteran Pentacle case, is suing the town board in order to force it to switch to nonsectarian prayer (or no prayer at all). A move Wiccan Jennifer Zarpentine disapproves of.

“Zarpentine said she was pleased by the opportunity to pray at the meeting. ‘I thought the invocation went well,’ she said. ‘The board was respectful;, they all bowed their heads.’ As far as the lawsuit goes, Zarpentine said the town isn’t being discriminatory. ‘They are including everybody,’ she said. ‘They asked me.’”

Which illustrates a point where there is some divergence between groups like the ACLU and modern Pagans. Most modern Pagans are fine with religious expression so long as there is full and consistent inclusion. While the AU, and similar organizations, take a harder line of enforcing nonsectarian or nothing.

“We’re glad to see that the (Town Board) is now cognizant of the diversity of the community, and it’s too bad it took a lawsuit to get them to see the light … While the Wiccan prayer will likely be more inclusive than prayers offered in the past, that doesn’t change that what we want is for the town to adopt a policy that prayer-givers offer nonsectarian prayers.”

Despite these differences, our faith groups have generally experienced a net gain in allying ourselves with church-state separation advocacy organizations. This will most likely continue until modern Pagan organizations gather sufficient fiscal and political power to form their own legal advocacy groups. Even then, I don’t foresee a day where Pagans will be unhappy with the ACLU or AU fighting to keep religion out of politics in America. A truly democratic and secular country is one where the religious minority doesn’t have to fear outright discrimination or persecution.

On March 26th, First Freedom First, a joint project of The Interfaith Alliance Foundation and Americans United, held a historic national live simulcast to talk about church-state separation.

“In movie theaters in 25 cities across the nation, interested citizens will gather to learn about the threats to church-state separation and to demand that presidential hopefuls and candidates for other offices answer questions about key issues dealing with individual freedom. A list of 10 great questions to ask candidates will be featured.”

Along with appearances by the famous and semi-famous (Kevin Bacon, Jack Klugman, Marc Maron), the special also highlighted individuals who embody the struggle over church-state issues. One of these was Roberta Stewart, a Pagan woman who fought for (and won) the addition of the Wiccan Pentacle as an approved “emblem of belief” (for grave markers and headstones) by the Veterans’ Administration. A battle she engaged in after her husband, Patrick Stewart, a Wiccan, was killed in Afghanistan.

Roberta Stewart with host Peter Coyote

You can now watch First Freedom First’s simulcast event “Everything You Always Wanted to Know about the Separation of Church and State – but Were Afraid to Ask!” online. For those wanting to skip to Roberta Stewart’s section, the segment begins at 41:00 minutes into the program. The organization has also posted a petition for elected officials, calling on them to affirm and safeguard the separation of church and state. Good on the FFF for highlighting this proud moment for the modern Pagan movement, Roberta and Patrick Stewart, and church-state separation.

The town of Greece in New York is the latest flash-point in battles over the separation of Church and State. There, due to predominately Christian prayers (all but two since 2004 were explicitly Christian) said before the Greece Town Board meeting, Americans United is bringing litigation to force them to switch to non-sectarian opening prayers.

“Americans United sued the Greece, N.Y., Town Board and its supervisor, John Auberger, on behalf of two local residents who object to government-sponsored religious activities that favor one faith over others. The lawsuit alleges that almost all of the board’s opening prayers are explicitly Christian, and that since 2004, only a single non-Christian has been invited to deliver the opening prayer.”

Stepping into the ring to do battle with Americans United is the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative Christian legal organization.

“The case is a matter of religious freedom, said Joel Oster, senior litigation counsel for Alliance Defense Fund. The Arizona-based nonprofit Christian group litigates court cases involving religious freedom, the sanctity of human life and traditional family values. ‘The town of Greece is following a long-standing tradition established by our founding fathers, and that is to pray before events and ask for divine guidance,’ he said. ‘The town is just following in line with the great history and tradition of America.’”

Of course that “long-standing tradition” seems to have omitted non-Christians almost completely. The town, sensing their problem, scurries to become as inclusive as possible. How do you do that? You invite a Wiccan, obviously.

“[Greece deputy town supervisor Jeff] McCann said the town has long used a list of worship services published in a local newspaper to extend invitations to local clergy for the meetings. The list offers little diversity, he said, and the town has had difficulty locating people from nontraditional faiths who may not have a physical church building they attend. “Now that the issue has gotten some publicity, we’ve had people call up and say they have an interest in delivering a prayer,” he said, adding that nonclergy, the nonreligious and anyone else who wishes to speak the pre-meeting prayer is welcome. “If a private person wants to come and say a prayer, they can come and do it.” Indeed, he said, next month’s Wiccan prayer was initiated by local resident Jennifer Zarpentine, who called town offices to ask whether she would be welcome at a meeting.”

You would think that regular announcements at meetings, or perhaps a small ad in the local newspaper, would have helped flush out some non-Christian prayer-leaders before this whole mess started. Because now, inviting a Wiccan won’t be enough to stop litigation.

“We’re glad to see that the (Town Board) is now cognizant of the diversity of the community, and it’s too bad it took a lawsuit to get them to see the light … While the Wiccan prayer will likely be more inclusive than prayers offered in the past, that doesn’t change that what we want is for the town to adopt a policy that prayer-givers offer nonsectarian prayers.”

Unfortunately for the town of Greece, the law isn’t on their side. Several Supreme Court and Circuit Court rulings, including a prominent case involving a Wiccan, all point towards a requirement for non-sectarian prayer by legislative bodies. So if don’t want sectarian prayers to leave your city council or town board, you better become radically inclusive now, or else you’ll end up with enforced non-sectarian prayer and (most likely) a hefty legal bill.

My semi-regular round-up of articles, essays, and opinions of note for discerning Pagans and Heathens.

Yesterday was the Chinese New Year (the year of the Rat), and April Rabkin of Slate.com details how China’s Communist government has worked over the years to eliminate Taoist and indigenous religious traditions associated with the holiday.

“Perhaps the most significant blow to Chinese New Year was the government’s decision to forbid the annual burning of the Kitchen God, whose paper effigy hung above the stove … for more than 50 years, the Kitchen God’s effigy has been censored material. While low-ranking gods like the Lords of the Door, who guard courtyard gates and inner doorways, were more tolerated, the Kitchen God was not. In the more traditional countryside, peasants evaded censors by printing the Kitchen God at home on crude wooden blocks. But many young Beijingers I recently asked had never heard of the Kitchen God. Others laughed sheepishly, as if he were a national embarrassment – the equivalent of still believing in Santa Claus as an adult.”

Some Chinese are hopeful that Hu Jintao’s recent announcement concerning an easing towards Marxist attitudes on religion might translate into allowing a return to more traditional forms of New Year’s celebrations. However, it remains to be seen if the Chinese government, long an enemy of religious freedom, will truly change course on this matter or if it is simply a public-relations gesture.

Turning from China to Venezuela, the Associate Press reports that an influx of Cubans into the country has helped spur a rising interest in Santeria.

“[Santeria] rituals have become an attractive option for Venezuelans seeking a unique spiritual path, including healing ceremonies aimed at curing everything from illness to heartache. Some even believe certain gods will offer protection from Venezuela’s rampant violent crime. The surge in Santeria, which is practiced by many in Cuba, can partly be explained by the arrival of thousands of Cuban doctors in Venezuela. President Hugo Chavez has been providing Cuba with subsidized oil in exchange for thousands of physicians who come to the South American country to treat poor people … The Santeria movement nowadays cuts across racial groups and class lines and includes lawyers and other professionals as well as the unemployed among its adherents. In spite of rapid economic growth propelled by Venezuela’s key oil industry, people here face problems from crime and inflation.”

The article also mentions the local folk religion surrounding the Indian goddess Maria Lionza (a subject this blog has covered before), which has also been flourishing under the reign of President Hugo Chavez. For more on Venzuela, check out Slate.com’s recent travelogue of the country.

On the political front, American’s United has issued a statement calling on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee to reject a federal court nominee partially because of his hostile stance towards minority religions.

“On Feb. 12, the Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to consider the nomination of Richard H. Honaker to the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming. The Rock Springs, Wyo., attorney promotes the idea that the U.S. Constitution creates a Christian nation and that government need not remain neutral on religion … [AU executive director Rev. Barry W. Lynn] argued that Honaker has also shown a striking callousness to minority faiths. The Wyoming lawyer has suggested that democracy and freedom prosper only because of Christianity and that other faiths pose a danger to such freedom. ‘A judge with such an opinion of minority faiths is unlikely to be able to fairly and objectively adjudicate issues affecting their freedoms and rights,’ wrote Lynn.”

I doubt anyone is surprised that George W. Bush has nominated a judge who has an “abrasive” view of non-Christian faiths. Honaker’s appointment to the federal bench would be completely detrimental to the health and safety of minority (non-Christian) religions in the United States. Let us hope that the Democrat-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee (chaired by Patrick J. Leahy) shows some backbone concerning this appointment.

The satirical site Avant News has spoofed John McCain’s recent troubles with Republican-party conservatives by claiming he burned a Witch in order to get into their good graces.

“Republican presidential candidate John McCain burned a witch yesterday outside his campaign headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia, in a gesture some political analysts believe was intended to dispel accusations by rivals that the political veteran may possess dangerously moderate tendencies.”

The “quote” from Rush Limbaugh about the Witch-burning was a real treat.

The Cedar Creek Pilot interviews Chad Owens, author of the recently published “Working For Death”. Owens, who wrote the book while recuperating from a car accident, talks about his religious journey from conservative Christianity to Paganism.

“In high school, I preached under the conservative Church of Christ,” Owens said. “But I didn’t know the person in the mirror. So I walked for a month – Dallas, Mississippi, Tennessee, San Antonio, Austin. Then I did a series of articles against the church on online boards and posts under an assumed name, Adrian Gray. I?have pagan beliefs now. There are many different beliefs out there, but the point is, we all have beliefs and argue about them, but we’re all here on Earth in the same boat, living and trying to find our place.”

The profile doesn’t delve further into what Owens’ “pagan” beliefs are, but apparently his book details a war in the “realm of the gods”. Which seems to hint at a predilection towards polytheism.

The Revealer looks at the beginning of a backlash against the spiritually self-centered book phenomena that is “Eat, Pray. Love”.

“They’re the victims of Gilbert’s spiritual snake oil as surely as fans of The Secret or Joel Osteen’s prosperity gospel who’re encouraged to respond to economic woes with magical thinking. No health insurance? Forced to work double shifts? Can’t afford enough heat? The problem, dear reader, is spiritual, not material. Join a union? Forget it. Work with a church group to demand legislative change? Stop worrying so much. All you need is love, and 15 bucks for a paperback to read on the train.”

Oh, Oprah Winfrey, so much to answer for.

In a final note, the Feri community has produced a CD of poetry to help Feri co-founder Cora Anderson with her medical and care costs.

“Here is a sneak peek at the CD of Victor Anderson’s poetry that I am using as a “Thank You” gift for donors to the Corafund (like PBS pledge gifts). I will have a limited number of the CDs at Pantheacon at Anaar’s booth in the dealer’s room. For Pantheacon, the CDs will be a gift for donors to the fund who donate at least $10. After Pantheacon I will be sending out CDs to people who currently subscribe to recurring monthly donations and to those who have donated $20 or more in the last 2 months. However, the idea going forward is to use the CD to encourage new donors to subscribe to the recurring donations. More details later.”

Among those reading Victor Anderson’s poetry for the CD are T. Thorn Coyle, Sharon Knight, and Storm Faerywolf. It looks like an amazing collector’s item that also benefits a very worthy cause.

That is all I have for now, have a great day!