It’s time to revisit a hoary chestnut within Pagandom, getting an apology from the Catholic Church for their role in the witch trials of Early Modern Europe (and for other ills against pre-Christian religious adherents). Some of you may remember that this was quite the big deal back in 2000, when the Catholic Church celebrated its Jubilee Year and then Pope John Paul II issued a series of apologies for sins committed by the Church.

“Christians have often denied the Gospel; yielding to a mentality of power, they have violated the rights of ethnic groups and peoples, and shown contempt for their cultures and religious traditions: be patient and merciful towards us, and grant us your forgiveness!  We ask this through Christ our Lord … let us pray for women, who are all too often humiliated and emarginated, and let us acknowledge the forms of acquiescence in these sins of which Christians too have been guilty.”

In the lead-up to these apologies a group of prominent Pagans (including Selena Fox, Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, and  Philip Carr-Gomm) asked the Pope to apologize to “Witches and Pagans” harmed by the Inquisition.

“…for more than a year now, the Vatican has publicly indicated that the Pope plans to make a broad-ranging international as well as interfaith apology for the Inquisition. According to press coverage, this Vatican-initiated apology is to be to Protestant Christians, Jews, Muslims, and others. Thus far, Pagans have not been specifically named, even though practitioners of Pagan folkways in Europe were prominent among those persecuted by the Inquisition—especially on charges of witchcraft. Pagans, scholars, Christian clergy, and others have joined together in writing the Pope with hopes that this historic international interfaith apology is indeed inclusive, and that the apology extends to Nature religions practitioners as well as to Christians, Muslims, and Jews.”

It is highly debatable that there were scores of “Witches and Pagans” (as we understand the term) still around during the time of the Inquisition to be tried for heresy so their “prominent” victim-hood is rather in doubt, but this was 1998-99 before the dramatic rise of (readily available) Pagan scholarship and books like “Triumph of the Moon” and various witch-hunt debunking books seeped into the general Pagan consciousness. Still, the group claimed a victory of sorts for the apology to “ethnic religions” and the whole issue generally faded into the background.

Now, flash forward to Pope Benedict XVI issuing recent apologies for clergy sex abuse scandals and promoting a Holocaust denier, prompting Pagan activist and On Faith panelist Starhawk to enter the apology queue.

“…if apologies are being given out, Witches would like one. It’s more than time that the Catholic and Protestant Churches both apologized for centuries of persecution of Witches, Pagans and those they deemed ‘heretics’ for believing something different than standard dogma. How about an apology for the Papal Bull of Pope Innocent the Eighth, in 1484, that made Witchcraft an heresy and unleashed the Inquisition against traditional healers, midwives, and any woman unpopular with her neighbors for being too uppity? It’s high past time to apologize for the Malleus Maleficarum, a vicious document written by two Dominican priests in 1486 that created a whole mythology of Satan worship, attributed it mostly to women, and unleashed a wave of accusations, torture, and judicial murder that have haunted us ever since. An apology won’t do much good, now, to those accused, tormented, and destroyed because someone coveted their property or needed a local scapegoat, nor to their children left motherless or fatherless centuries ago. But it might clear some air.”

This leads religion writer and Catholic convert (and Beliefnet blogger) David Gibson to accuse Starhawk of wrapping herself in a cloak of victim-hood, distorting history, and ignoring the Jubilee apologies. He also, strangely, makes this all about the witch-related killings in Africa (which Benedict XVI recently commented on).

“But it is also important to examine one’s own conscience before judging another. And while “witches” (or those who are slottled in various related categories) are too often victims, and the pope acknowledged that in Africa, the “imagination, intution, and magic” that Starhawk cites also fuel terrible abuses and horrific crimes against innocents in Africa and elsewhere. The pope also spoke against that. Did Starhawk? Perhaps she or her clan spoke out against abusive withcraft and superstition and neo-paganism during the papal visit to Africa, but I didn’t see it.”

Gibson making this about African witch-related killings when Starhawk never brings up the subject makes him seem a tad defensive (and he’s also wrong that modern Pagans haven’t addressed the issue), and his blog post prompts resident Beliefnet Pagan blogger Gus diZerega to weigh in on the subject.

“And so I am not convinced that the African examples Gibson would have us denounce are properly criticized.  Maybe, maybe not.  All I know of them is what their detractors have said. When those describing them are also associated with an institution having a long history of distorting and maligning indigenous spirituality, I’ll reserve judgment as to whether we are getting accurate information on those African examples … I think while we all must acknowledge the dark sides of our respective histories in order to inoculate ourselves against the disease of self-righteousness, the true task of our time today is to build our communities on what is best in our own traditions, and let others do the same in theirs, relying in Interfaith to promote mutual respect, while enabling friendly relations with different religions to marginalize those within any particular tradition who seek to gain power within their own community  through sowing divisions and distrust towards others.”

Gus diZerega’s reasonableness seems to disarm Gibson a bit, making him take a more thoughtful tone.

“Beliefnet’s own Gus diZerega, author of “A Pagan’s Blog,” has a very thoughtful (he’s nicer than I am, that is) response to my post below on Starhawk calling on Pope Benedict XVI to apologize for the church’s persecution of witches. I appreciate his response, both spirit and in content … in his wrap up I was put in mind of how all religions can get tarred by the actions of the few, especially leaders, or the misdeeds (or worse) of those fringe or even mainstream few who claim to be acting in the name of their tradition. Even though they are hardly doing so.”

If I were to take a meaning from these recent exchanges, perhaps it would be that the age of Pagans demanding apologies from large Christian institutions should come to a close. Instead, we should take the example of Gus diZerega here and focus on mutual communication, responsiveness, and understanding (facilitated in part by a new-media paradigm that encourages more open discourse). Demanding respect and equal treatment because we exist here and now in secular societies that guarantee us religious freedom, not because we might have existed during a time of persecution hundreds of years ago. I’m far more worried about injustice now than whether some poor woman persecuted centuries ago was really a Witch or not. I don’t need a persecution narrative in my Paganism.

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

SF Weekly interviews Sister Edith Myflesh from the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and discusses the group’s popularity, charity work, religious diversity, and what real-live nuns think of them.

“…the sisters have no affiliation to any one creed. Some are pagan, some Jewish, even some practicing Catholics. Despite the church’s stance that the order “mocks” women who’ve taken traditional religious vows, Sister Edith swears the nuns she’s met have been nothing but supportive. “They get what we do,” she says, explaining that the tasks of the female clergy – caring for the sick, raising money for charity – have a lot in common with the sisters’. And like parishioners going to confession, Sister Edith has found that people blurt out the most personal things to a member of the order in full makeup. “When we look like that, we’re not human anymore. We become mirrors for people to project onto,” she says, recalling the times she’s given relationship advice to strangers.”

More subtle hints that as religion becomes ever-more female dominated boundary maintenance and the castigation of blasphemers will slowly lose its importance, replaced instead with a more pragmatic stance regarding the usefulness of holy fools?

Over at his Beliefnet blog, Gus diZerega gives a three-part argument (part one, part two, part three) against a “Pagan clergy”. In his final installment, diZerega argues that completely severing matters of faith and religion from government control (marriage, military, prison chaplaincy) will serve us far better than trying to construct an institutionalized clergy model.

“To sum it up, as our numbers increase we will need a larger professionally trained group of Pagans who can do some of the kinds of counseling work that Christians do through their clergy.  But we do not need that kind of institutionalized status to do it, and our traditions and the core of who we are will be safer if we do not seek it  We are on much safer ground to invoke the issue of religious freedom, now that we are widely recognized in the courts and among many religious leaders as a legitimate spiritual practice.”

DiZerega seems to assert that Pagan religious leaders should stick to ritual, rites of passage, and teaching, while other Pagans should pursue academic experience in counseling and medicine (and I’m assuming, legal arbitration), avoiding the  (corrupting?) confluence of power and influence usually associated with the monotheist clergy/laity model. Indeed, according to diZerega, the entire modern concept of “clergy” can contaminate us in our search for mainstream respectability.

The lesbian-focused site Lez Get Real features a short e-mail conversation with Pagan author Deborah Blake concerning Wiccan and Pagan attitudes towards homosexuality.

“First of all, in answer to your question about homosexuality–in general, Pagans accept all paths, very definitely including homosexuality. My step-daughter is gay and a Pagan. In fact, many gays, lesbians and transgenders are attracted to Wicca and Paganism in part because it is such an accepting religion. There is absolutely nothing in our beliefs that says that alternative sexuality is bad, forbidden or in any way “lesser” than more conventionally accepted sexuality.”

Always nice to see more communication between the LGBT community with the modern Pagan community. While there are a variety of attitudes within different modern Pagan religions concerning LGBT-folk, I would say that the vast majority are fully accepting and welcoming to gays. Indeed, as I’ve pointed out before, gay marriage is very much a Pagan issue too.

Over at Letter From Hardscrabble Creek, Chas Clifton passes along the news that HBO’s “Rome” may rise again as a feature-length film.

“A feature version may be in the works to wrap up the unresolved plot strands of the award-winning HBO/BBC TV series Rome, which dramatised the dirty-politics underside of Rome’s transitional period from republic to virtual monarchy amidst civil war.”

As much as I enjoyed the series, I thought it went (historically speaking) off the rails towards the end of its second season. I mean, they couldn’t even give poor Cicero his famous last words! Still, the sets were fantastic, and the religious elements engaging, so I suppose I’d fork over the cash to see a big-screen version should it actually come about.

In a final note, if you want to know how hard it really is to uncover Pagan news on a daily basis, check out the Pew Forum’s examination of religious news coverage in 2008.

“Throughout much of 2008, the media generally seemed to follow two patterns in its coverage of religion. First, religion reporting was often episodic, clustering intensely around big events such as the pope’s visit and religion stories related to the 2008 holiday season. Religion stories also faded quickly from the headlines. Second, the angle of religion coverage frequently gravitated toward controversies, such as Barack Obama’s relationship with Jeremiah Wright and stories about the clergy sex-abuse scandal that surfaced during the pope’s visit. This was particularly problematic for the presidential and vice-presidential candidates, who were inundated with questions concerning their faith.”

All in all, only 1% of mainsteam media coverage focused on religious news (on par with education, immigration, and race), and nearly 40% of that centered on the Pope’s visit to America. Considering the huge impact faith and religion have on the world, you would think it’d be a bit higher. If it weren’t for the Internet, blogs, and Google scouring every online news source, I doubt we’d hear much at all concerning minority faiths.

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

We all know I’ve had my issues with religion mega-site Beliefnet over the years, but I have to give credit where credit is due. The site, since its purchase by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, has tried to reach out to the various religious communities that regularly visit and make use of its services. One recent initiative has been to add several new blogs, many dedicated to a particular faith tradition. Now the Pagan community is (finally) getting its due with the addition of Gus diZerega as an official blogger.

Gus diZerega

I need to emphasize that this is A Pagan’s blog.  We are a spiritual tradition whose members are held together by common practices far more than by common beliefs.  It has always been so in Pagan cultures.  From Classical times to the traditions of African Diasporic religions of today and those of our indigenous peoples as well, broadly Pagan traditions have always been of this nature.  NeoPagans be they British traditional Wiccans, Celtic Reconstructionists, Asatru, Druids, or any of many other new traditions, may appear bizarrely eclectic and turbulent from a scriptural perspective, but we fit right in with our own history.  We do not much fight or argue over dogma, unless someone ventures to speak for us all on those matters.  I do not want to try.

I couldn’t think of a better candidate to start off a more productive relationship between Beliefnet, the various faith communities represented at that site, and the wider Pagan community. Gus is author of “Pagans & Christians: The Personal Spiritual Experience”, and co-author of the much-praised “Beyond the Burning Times: A Pagan and Christian in Dialogue”. A veteran Gardnerian Wiccan with 25 years of experience under his belt, he is also a political scientist who is helping to start a new online academic journal. I advise my readers to head over to the new blog and say hello, add it to your blogrolls, and particiapate in this new venture (I’ve heard rumours that if this goes well, they might want to add more Pagan voices). For more about Gus and his beliefs, check out my recent interview with him.

According to Fishbowl NY, religious mega-site Beliefnet has been purchased by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation (which owns Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and MySpace).

“Steve Waldman’s belief paid off today when News Corp. purchased Beliefnet.com, the spirituality-based Web site Waldman founded in 1999 and has run as editor-in-chief since. In response to an anonymous tip we received, a call to Waldman resulted in a return call from a Fox spokeswoman requesting that this item be held until tomorrow morning to be supplemented by further information. When offered the opportunity to deny the story, the response was ‘Okay, we’re not going to comment.’”

No doubt details, including how much was paid for the site will be coming soon. As for what this means for Beliefnet? Well, loads of money most likely, and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some “synergy” between MySpace and Beliefnet’s own social networking beta site. Not to mention content-sharing opportunities from News Corp’s massive media holdings.

Perhaps most importantly, this is the end of Beliefnet as an independent entity. While I certainly have my criticisms of the site for its treatment of non-monotheists, it was at least not dancing to the tune of Murdoch whose other religious-oriented holdings include Christian publishing company Zondervan, and Christian movie distributor Fox Faith (they once owned Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network too, but sold it off).

No doubt promises of independence and a glorious future are forthcoming, but I’m not sure this will be good for the already-marginalized religious minorities who were once strong supporters of Beliefnet. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if, over the next few years, Beliefnet grows ever-more Christian and conservative in tone. A “family friendly” site to help promote Fox Faith films and hype new Christian book releases from (coincidentally) Zondervan.

ADDENDUM: Get Religion has just posted the official news-release on the story, which seems to confirm some of my suspicions regarding the acquisition.

“FEG’s goal is to leverage these characteristics across a broader media canvas and provide programming, production, advertising sales, technology and marketing expertise that will enhance an already terrific product in a rapidly growing market.”

Translation: Fox owns Beliefnet now, and you can expect a lot of Fox-centric (Christian) content in the near future.

So lets say you run the biggest religion and spirituality web site on the Internet, and you decide to run a cover-story on a Wiccan who just won the lottery. What supplementary articles do you pick to run with the Associate Press story?

B-Net’s balancing act.

“…idolatry, polytheism, and witchcraft are really just three manifestations of the same error – to which, interestingly, Hebrew gives no name. They share the mistaken assumption that divinity can be broken down into discrete entities (gods) and manipulated for our benefit. By contrast, the God of the Bible, a purely spiritual being, must be the ultimate unity and perfectly free to act as He sees fit, unaffected by our attempted manipulations or any other circumstances.”

Before you think I’m about to lay into Beliefnet again, let me just say that I applaud B-Net’s move to balance things out like this. I look forward to articles on why monotheism runs counter to our natural religious impulses by Jordan Paper, or perhaps an essay on the superiority of polytheism by John Michael Greer to “balance” out the next front-page story about something good happening to a Christian or Jew. I mean, fair is fair right? I’m sure B-Net won’t let us down. But you might want to remind them to stay consistent, just in case they forget.

The settlement of the veteran pentacle case continues to dominate the Pagan news (and news about Pagans). Now that it has been a couple days since the news first broke, more commentary is starting to emerge.

The Witches Voice (the largest Pagan site on the Internet) has posted commentary by Pete ‘Pathfinder’ Davis, Archpriest of The Aquarian Tabernacle Church of Wicca. Davis’s church was involved in an ACLU lawsuit separate from the Americans Untied suit to get the pentacle marker approved.

“We here at the Aquarian Tabernacle Church of Wicca want also to acknowledge everyone, known to us or not, who has ever fired a shot in this long, drawn out battle over the last nine years, especially our own Scott Stearns (USN) who breathed new life into this struggle when it had reached its low point. They all deserve acknowledgment as the behind-the-scenes heavy lifters who paved smooth the road to success. So very many people wrote their legislators, senators and representatives, letters-to-the-editor and exerted subtle but persistent pressure in so very many ways we can never list. We can even thank our president for his offhanded anti-Wiccan remark some years ago in Texas, which helped us all win. When we all work together in a coordinated effort, we CAN move mountains!”

You can read the ACLU’s press release on the issue, here.

Other Pagans who have commented on the win include Deborah Lipp, Yvonne Aburrow, Hecate, Chas Clifton, Joel Monka, John Williams, and Astrid at The Northern Path among many others.

Outside commentary has been emerging as well, the issue got a mention at The Revealer, and Dan Pulliam discusses the case for Get Religion. Pulliam complains that what should simply be a religious freedom issue has been swept up by politics.

“…unfortunately, the story has been swept up by politics when it is not clear that it was directly related to politics … There seems to be good second-hand evidence that the VA’s decision was indeed influenced by statements made by President Bush. But the terms of the settlement with the VA kept those documents from coming out. Call me a skeptic (because I am about most things), but as a reporter I would not be satisfied with that an answer.”

Pulliam also quotes heavily from a blog post by Mark Oppenheimer at the Huffington Post who became completely distracted by one line of the New York Times coverage and goes off on a rant about the “absurd” historical claims concerning Wicca, and how journalists can’t let them off the hook!

“But the very capable Neela Banerjee, who writes about religion frequently, makes one big mistake: Wicca is not “a type of pre-Christian belief that reveres nature and its cycles.” As I and others have explained, Wicca is a 19th- and 20th-century invention with a creative backstory invented to lend it historical legitimacy.”

Saying “a type of” can give an impression of “ancientness” but it is never overtly said or claimed in the article. Now perhaps “a type of” was the wrong phrasing, maybe “incorporates” or “inspired by” or “aspires to revive” should have been used instead, but the practice of polytheism can indeed by classified as a “type of pre-Christian belief” when used in the context of a religion that looks primarily to a pre-Christian Europe for inspiration. But those considerations matter little since Oppenheimer is someone with an ax to grind who has a history of dismissive attitudes towards modern Paganism and Wicca (maybe he can have tea with Charlotte Allen sometime).

For further negative backlash, About.com alternative religions blogger Jennifer Emick gives us a wrap-up of people less than pleased by the approved pentacle. But in general everyone* from across the political spectrum seems pleased at the decision, though Pandagon is a bit shocked that Free Republic readers are OK with it.

*Religious Internet giant Beliefnet hasn’t covered the issue yet, feeling that cover stories on ‘The Secret’ and how to pray the Bible took precedence. Maybe next week.

One of the things that I find so appealing about blogging is the idea of community. Not just community with my fellow Pagan and Heathen bloggers, but with a larger religious blogosphere. I’m proud that some Christian and Jewish bloggers have added me to their blogroll, and that occasionally stories important to our faiths break through into the larger religious blogosphere. But it seems that some religious sites would be happier with a singular emphasis on monotheism.

Beliefnet, one of the largest religion site on the Internet, has been hosting a religious blog aggregator that it cleverly calls “Blog Heaven”. When it premiered it included Pagan author and academic Chas Clifton’s blog in its “other” category. This wasn’t a problem. After all, we are dramatically outnumbered by the dominant monotheisms, so a token inclusion seemed fair enough. But then it was removed recently after “technical difficulties”.

“…the blog IS currently unavailable from Beliefnet’s Blog Heaven. The technical and editorial team has recently been made aware of this issue and is working to resolve the situation. Please know that this issue is not related to the specific views or ideas presented in Mr. Clifton’s blog.”

After some protest from the Pagan blogosphere and Beliefnet participants the site re-appeared. But now it has disappeared again, and I somehow doubt its yet another “technical” issue with the aggregator considering this hasn’t happened to any other site on the page.

“BeliefNet’s Blog Heaven site has been cleansed of non-monotheists. No Buddhist bloggers, no Hindus, no Pagans. And yet I hear that BeliefNet is still trying to get some Pagans to write essays for the main site. Do we even need them, with all the Pagan sites and forums out there?”

Of course this is the same site who thinks bigoted comments concerning minority faiths is just fine from its a-list blog team.

“I think it’s a form of demon worship, and besides which, it’s savage.” – Rod Dreher, discussing Santeria on his “Crunchy Con” blog, 02.09.07

When Beliefnet first started, I was a fan. They had (and still have) discussion boards for every faith imaginable, they had Margot Adler and Starhawk on as regular columnists, and they seemed receptive to making sure Pagans and other minority faiths felt included. But after declaring bankruptcy in 2002 the site has re-positioned itself to be far more friendly to the people with the most money and that meant evangelicals and “spiritual but not religious” seekers.

I don’t blame Beliefnet for wanting to be economically sustainable, but I do blame it for its lack of attention to minority faiths in its features and blogs. The places that get the highest percentage of its readership. It sends a message when “Blog Heaven” is purged of non-monotheists, it sends a message when Beliefnet favors Christian and monotheist voices in its hosted blogs, and it sends a message that a site that prides itself so highly in being “multi-faith” so obviously favors those who can fatten their wallets. I think Chas Clifton’s question is the correct one, do we really need Beliefnet? They certainly seem eager to prove they don’t need us.

Some quick updates on stories covered by this blog.

The Veteran Pentacle Quest: The suit against the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is going forward and will be heard this summer despite more stonewalling efforts from the VA.

“The VA argued in a motion filed Jan. 19 with the U.S. District Court in Madison that the lawsuit should be put on hold until after the department finalized its new rules related to accepting new grave marker symbols. That process could take up to 12 months but the VA would make a decision on the Wiccan request within a month after the process ended, the government’s motion said. The Wiccans’ attorney objected, arguing that nothing commits the VA to finalize its rules within that time frame, or take up the Wiccan request at all.”

Luckily the judge was having none of it, and has set the trial for June 29. The VA has issued no statements regarding their move to delay the trial, and have not returned requests for comment. To catch up on the history of this case, check out Circle Sanctuary’s page devoted to the issue.

The Grand Rapids “Freedom To Harass Us” Case: The Grand Rapids Pagan Pride Coordinators have issued a public statement on the the suit filed by The Street Preachers’ Fellowship against the city of Grand Rapids. On the advice of their lawyer, they are keeping mum, and asking the Pagan community to not bother city officials in Grand Rapids.

“If we want to continue to host a Pagan Pride in Grand Rapids, we need to remain calm & wait until those items are needed. If this blows up, the city may change the way that they allow parks to run. A point to make here is this, the papers have not been filled with the courts yet & who knows, when a judge sees this, s/he may dismiss it on the spot. We are in contact with our attorney & we have been advised to not speak to anyone about this, so please, support us with the letters & do not, I repeat PLEASE DO NOT just start sending in letters to the press, city attorney or anyone else that I failed to mention.”

So it seems we won’t be getting any official word on the behavior of the Christians on that day. But a commenter going by the name of “Jenn” did post some details of the event, but without official confirmation I can’t speak to its veracity.

“…in this case they physically and verbily intimidated people there. Witnesses say a girl was circled and forced to tears. They were not simply coming around, handing out bibles and kindly asking for a moment of their time to discuss religion. They were there to start s**t.”

We’ll have to wait and see if the Christian group is able to spin this as a simple “free speech” case.

Tyra’s Witchcraft Adventure: Since the original post on the Tyra Banks “Witchcraft” episode, guests on the show are starting to come forward to publicly express their displeasure with how the show was handled. “White Witch” and model Wrenna Monet has posted her experiences on her MySpace blog.

“Doing the Tyra Banks Show I thought it would bring a positive light on my religion and how it is viewed….NOT! Knowing she was a Christian, I didn’t take it into consideration that she would be just as judgmental as most people that do not understand the ways we follow, which is a peaceful way of living. Tyra provided a perfect example of how we’re viewed and was completely biased to the whole thing which I found disrespectful!”

My sympathies go out to all involved, perhaps Tyra will revisit the issue at some point and allow her former guests a chance to clarify their views without the born-again Christian chaser. The show’s blog has gotten nearly 400 comments (mostly negative) concerning the Witchcraft episode, it remains to be seen if Tyra or a representative from the show will issue any kind of statement regarding their treatment of modern Pagans.

In a final note, it seems Beliefnet has decided that Pagans don’t get into Heaven. Blog Heaven that is. Chas Clifton’s Pagan blog has been a part of Beliefnet’s religion blog aggregator “Blog Heaven” since its inception. Now it has mysteriously disappeared.

“No one from BeliefNet informed me that my blog was given the boot; I just happened to notice. When I asked what was going on, someone named Tim Hayne, editorial project manager, said that it was unintentional and tried to make it look like it was my fault for changing something at this end…Ten days have gone by, but nothing has changed. You won’t find Letter From Hardscrabble Creek in Blog Heaven….But the URL of my site feed has not changed. So I have to wonder if someone at the supposedly interfaith BeliefNet site just cannot stomach an outspokenly Pagan blog. It’s their site and they can run it the way that they want. But why can’t they be honest?”

Chas Clifton’s blog was the only Pagan entry. The aggregator is now almost completely dominated by monotheist traditions (not even a Buddhist blog!). I would urge all my readers to write to Beliefnet (politely) and ask for the return of Chas Clifton’s blog (and even better to include more diversity in their aggregator). There are several vibrant and informative blogs coming from Pagans and other minority religions, it shouldn’t cost Beliefnet anything to be more inclusive on a simple aggregator.

Beliefnet takes a look at the portrayal of religion in the critically acclaimed HBO series “Rome” (just in time for the beginning of the second season). Though the series tends to play fast and loose with history at times, they do try to portray just how important (and ever-present) religion was in that culture.

“If the past is a foreign country, then ancient religion may be its most exotic locale. The HBO series “Rome,” which returns for its second season on Sunday, is hardly “Fodor’s Guide to Paganism,” but by venturing off some well-worn cinematic paths, the show has given the worship of the gods a generous treatment in a genre dominated by stories of gladiators and the advent of Christ. The creators of the serial drama, which focuses on the power struggles during the last days of the Roman Republic in the first century B.C.E., wanted to portray Roman religion not as a doomed prologue to Christianity but as a vibrant and meaningful part of everyday life.”

The articles references the now-infamous Taurobolium scene, and hints at what might have been if the budget had allowed.

“The show’s creators also had to bow to the pragmatics of TV production in the 21st century. One important and well-known festival was not included in “Rome” largely because it was too costly: The Lupercalia, which traditionally fell on February 15, was a fertility ritual the show scripted and then scrapped. ‘We had Mark Antony rushing through the streets in a wolf skin whipping fertile young women, but it was not to be,” Heller says. “If you’re going to get those rituals right, you need to do them grandly, because that would have been an amazing spectacle and we didn’t want to do it half-assed with a couple of guys running around in circles.’”

Ah, the opportunities lost. While some of the nuance of Religio Romana is lost to the soap-operatic story-lines, “Rome” is still one of the best attempts to portray the “pagan” past. Better by far than the endless films and television specials where Romans are played as decadent agnostics or foils to Christians. I can’t wait to rent these once they come out on DVD.