Word has come to us that well-known spiritual teacher and author Ted Andrews passed away on October 24th. Andrews is perhaps best known among Pagans for his 1996 book “Animal-Speak: The Spiritual & Magical Powers of Creatures Great & Small” and many other animal-themed works. He also authored books on Qabala, divination, and other psychic and occult practices, many for Llewellyn Worldwide.

Ted Andrews

“Ted’s books on animal magick are some of the best loved in the Wiccan community and are some of the most often used references for animal correspondences and animal magick … Ted was so respected for his writing and work with animals that he was invited to speak at the United Nations in New York in 2007. On October 24, 2009, Ted Andrews crossed the veil and returned to the Great Mother. His passing will leave a great void in many ways, especially because of his ability to bridge the gap between the Pagans and non-Pagans through his work with animals.” – Rowan Pendragon

In addition to writing books about connecting spiritually with animals, Andrews also worked in wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, and engaged in animal education and storytelling programs in school classrooms. He was, if you’ll forgive the expression, a truly rare bird in the field of New Age and occult literature, someone who walked their talk. For a fuller bio of his accomplishments, check out his page at Dragonhawk Publishing. May he find rest and peace.

News has reached us that author, teacher, radio-show host, comedian, and proud New York Witch Marion Weinstein passed away on July 1st, 2009. Weinstein is probably best known by many Pagans as the author of “Positive Magic”, which was first published in 1978 and soon became a beloved classic among women and men awakening to religious Witchcraft. She went on to write several more books, and give talks and workshops on a variety of Witchcraft-related topics, including a yearly stand-up comedy show each Halloween. One of Weinstein’s life-long goals was to de-stigmatize Witchcraft and have it recognized as a positive influence on the world.

Marion Weinstein, Candlemas 2009

“Weinstein’s guiding belief about Witchcraft is that a Witch’s job is to help the community. Her personal definition of magic is transformation. Thus she spreads information about personal self-transformation–always for the good of all and according to free will–as an ongoing way to help the individual self and the global community. A self-avowed “city Witch” in a modern world … Weinstein sees Witchcraft not only as a religion but also as a philosophy and a way of life, springing from a personal inspiration that comes from within.”

A public memorial service is being held at the NYC Pagan Pride Day celebration on September 26th. The service will be lead by Donna Henes, and you can contact her for more information. To learn more about Weinsteins rich and full life, check out her web site, her YouTube channel, and an interview conducted with Weinstein by the Wiccan / Pagan Times. May she rest in the arms of the Goddess and return to us again.

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

We start off with the sad news that author and surgeon Dr. Leonard Shlain passed away on Monday at the age of 71. Shlain is perhaps best known within the Pagan, Goddess, and New Age communities as the author of “The Alphabet Versus The Goddess: The Conflict Between Word and Image”.

“In this groundbreaking book, Leonard Shlain, author of the bestselling Art & Physics, proposes that the process of learning alphabetic literacy rewired the human brain, with profound consequences for culture. Making remarkable connections across a wide range of subjects including brain function, anthropology, history, and religion, Shlain argues that literacy reinforced the brain’s linear, abstract, predominantly masculine left hemisphere at the expense of the holistic, iconic feminine right one. This shift upset the balance between men and women initiating the disappearance of goddesses, the abhorrence of images, and, in literacy’s early stages, the decline of women’s political status. Patriarchy and misogyny followed.”

You can read obituaries for Leonard Shlain at Boing Boing and on his own web site. My condolences to his friends and family, may his spirit find rest and comfort.

If a journalist “outs” your religion to the wider world in the process of an investigation and you lose revenue because of it, is the journalist liable for your losses? A judge in Quebec thinks so, and has ordered Sun Media Corp. to pay 9000.00 dollars to two members of the Raelians.

“When newspaper reporter Brigitte McCann spent nine months undercover as a member of the Raelian sect in 2003, the resulting articles caused a stir in Quebec and won her the province’s top journalism prize. Her Journal de Montréal reports revealed a darker side of a group generally dismissed as UFO-believing clowns: Its leader believes he has been targeted for assassination by the CIA, he demands generous contributions from his 55,000 followers and his entourage includes “angels” prepared to die to protect him … The plaintiffs, whose names are withheld in the published judgment, both said they had suffered embarrassment and loss of revenue after being identified as senior figures close to sect leader Claude Vorilhon, who goes by the name Raël. Their photos, taken from a pamphlet distributed at a Raelian gathering, were published.”

Naturally the Raelian Movement hails this decision, though some journalists and lawyers are saying that this chills the exercise of free speech. However, the judge ruled that these individuals’ expectation of privacy had been violated because information about the sect was freely available, making an undercover infiltration excessive and unjustified. You can read an unofficial English translation of the court’s decision, here. This decision could have wide ramifications in Canada regarding the investigation and reporting on non-mainstream and minority faiths. After all, even loony UFO cultists deserve some expectation of privacy, don’t they?

As some of you know, I like to keep track of Pagan and witchcraft-related themes in the world of high fashion design. Well, another line of clothing has come to my attention that you may want to check out. An Allure article trumpets that goth is back in fashion (again) and mentions in passing a “Witches” line of clothing by Lauren Alexander and Gabby Applegate as part of the trend. So I tracked down some photos and exposition concerning the line at NOTCOT.

“Promising… “WITCHES” the new shadowy, supernatural, and chic collection from Lauren Alexander and Gabby Applegate. An incredible editorial presentation in vignette style to showcase the occult collection. Friday, the Thirteenth of March, Seven to Ten in the evening. Chateau Marmont, Bungalow 4”… fascinating part, not even the Dietch PR folks had seen the line before this evening… the designer’s description? “”This line is a modern take on Goth, Grunge, and Victorian dressing. The entire line is comprised of black lace, velvet, silk, and spandex. The collection includes everything from floor length velvet cloaks to lace cocktail dresses with rope details. The goal has been to combine all of these style elements to create something that we feel has been missing in our closets. This collection truly embodies the idea of a “modern witch”.”

The line is very occult-goth chic, do go check out the photos if that’s your bag.

Remember how we all rushed to embrace actress Cybill Shepherd for thanking “the Goddess” at an awards ceremony years ago? Well the FoxNews “Pop Tarts” column talks with Shepherd about Prop. 8, Obama, and her rather complex personal theology.

“I’m a Christian Pagan Buddhist Goddess worshiper, but I’m also a feminist. I think the ultimate glass ceiling is God, in another words, if we think God is a man, then we make man a God, and I studied and learned that there is a whole other history of the worshiping of the great mother,” she explained. “I really think that probably God is a woman, that helped me to break through that celestial glass ceiling.”

So she is a confirmed Goddess-worshiper, but in a Christian/Pagan/Buddhist sort of way. I suppose she has all her bases covered no matter what lies beyond this life.

Earlier this week Brownsville, Texas held an election for three seats on its City Commission, and if you believe local reverend and activist Alex Resendez, no withcraft or brujeria were involved in shaping the outcome.

“During Resendez’s April 28 invocation, candidates stood ready to address the standing-room-only crowd in the Brownsville Public Library. But after Resendez’s invocation, today’s election should be free of unknown, unwarranted and unwel-come intervention after he banished evil spirits from affecting the candidates and electoral contest. Resendez, a reverend and political activist, is different in his approach to politics. He believes that evil spirits are real in the world and wants to keep them out of the electoral process. He fervently believes in the democratic process … He also believes that witchcraft, or brujeria, has no place in elections and, just prior to the forum’s start, beseeched Christ during the invocation to banish any witchcraft attempts against the candidates and the election. “Si existe (it exists),” Resendez said Thursday of brujeria, in which one casts spells for a given out-come.”

Resendez also casts out demons as part of his ministry, but not from any of the candidates (so far). Of course we have no way of knowing if the reverend’s invocations were truly effective, perhaps they can poll any local witches or brujas living in the area? Were their spells thwarted? Did their preferred candidates lose? These are the kinds of things I want some follow-up on!

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

John Morehead’s Theofantastique blog (one of the best blogs out there concerning the intersections of religion, film, and horror) interviews Carrol L. Fry, author of “Cinema of the Occult: New Age, Satanism, Wicca, and Spiritualism in Film”, about her new book and how the “occult” (both faiths and practice) are portrayed in cinema.

“Movies about the occult are, well, movies after all and are made for profit not education. The occult is by its nature sensational and sensationalism sells. Filmmakers have target audiences, but they want to reach a broad spectrum of customers. And you have to remember that a lot of films that adapt occult paths are part of the horror genre, and that audience demands sensationalism. So even those Wiccan films that give a favorable spin to the Old Religion might well offend not only Wiccans but conservative Christians, the former because they don’t accurately reflect their beliefs and practices and the latter because they are made at all. I think the one Neo-Pagan film that most Pagans I’ve met would, and do, enjoy is The Wicker Man. This is ironic because director­­­ Robin Hardy and script writer Anthony Shaffer intended it to be a warning against occult practices as leading to cults. As I say in my book, those Wiccan films that reflect negatively on the Old Religion, B movies such as Silent Night Deadly Night IV: the Initiation or Suspiria are unrelentingly sexist and even misogynist and reflect on the challenge to male authority that feminist Wicca presents for some people.”

I recommend reading the whole thing, though I disagree with her analysis of “The Wicker Man”. From the interviews I’ve read, it always seemed to be more a cautionary tale concerning religious extremism from all angles than simply a warning against occultism in particular. While you’re there, you might also want to read Morehead’s post on geeks inherting the earth.

Slate.com explains the six types of white supremacist groups outlined by the Department of Homeland Security report, titled “Domestic Extremism Lexicon“. One of those six types is “Nordic mysticism” and they manage to give a summary while generally avoiding tarring all modern Norse and Germanic-based Pagan groups with a racist brush.

“Neo-Nordic paganism appeared in the United States in the 1970s and ’80s as part of a larger trend of pagan religions, like Wicca and Druidism. The racist offshoot of this religious movement is referred to as either Odinism or Wotanism—Odin and Wotan being different names for the chief Norse god. (David Lane, a leading white nationalist, preferred Wotanism because it contained the acronym WOTAN, or “Will of the Aryan Nation.”) White supremacists were drawn to the faith both because it represents an “authentically” white religion—as opposed to Christianity, which has its roots in the Middle East—and because of its emphasis on warrior culture.”

While the terminology is a bit off at times, Nina Shen Rastogi seems to have avoided the blanket statements (particularly concerning Pagan iconography and symbols) that have spurred Pagan criticism of some anti-defamation groups in the past. You can read more about this report at The Daily Beast.

In a final note, the St. Petersburg Times’ Andrew Meacham provides a moving obiturary for Lady Urania (aka Lois Ann Paris), a local Pagan community leader and part-owner of the Stone Circle Products in Florida.

“Before she became Lady Urania, Ms. Paris was a Catholic Sunday school teacher who worked for a Baltimore phone company. But she found the religion too authoritarian and began to study Wicca, or witchcraft. Ms. Paris was a short woman with a full voice, especially when delivering her opinion, which she did freely. A redhead with an attitude, her daughter-in-law said. After moving to Port Richey in 1991 with her husband, George, she blended in quickly with local Wiccans, the women and men who practice what they call an earth religion. The Wiccans say they keep a low profile because they fear discrimination and harassment. Lady Urania became part owner of the Stone Circle, a retail store where she sold books, crystals and candles and gave tarot readings.”

Lady Urania was 74. You can also read an announcement of her passing at Witchvox. May she rest in the Summerlands and return to us once again.

Famed ghost-hunter, paranormal investigator, and popularizer of Pagan faiths Hans Holzer passed away on Sunday at the age of 89. While most will remember him for his ghost-hunting and investigations into the Amityville house (the subject of several films), he also played a key role in the spread of Witchcraft/Wicca and other Pagan faiths in America during the 1970s. With books like “The New Pagans”, “The Truth About Witchcraft”, and “Confessions of a Witch”, Holzer responded to a need that the still nascent Pagan publishing industry couldn’t fill.

“For all their inadequacies, books such as Holzer’s … offer a snapshot of Pagan history circa 1970. It may be a blurry snapshot, but it is one of very few from the period. In addition, Holzer was correct when he suggested that his books would serve people seeking Pagan groups and teachers. Even today, in the age of e-mail and the World Wide Web, with the explosive growth of American Paganism from the low thousands in the early 1970s to estimates of close to a million in 2000 and growing rapidly, the majority are still solitary practitioners. More than one contemporary Pagan has described how important a book such as ‘The New Pagans’ could be when there was nothing else to go by.” – Chas Clifton, Her Hidden Children: The Rise of Wicca and Paganism in America (2006)

Though he participated in many Pagan groups over the years, and was made a Wiccan high priest according to the New York Times obituary, Holzer never really abandoned his Protestant Christian roots. Though his view of religion and Christianity ended up being a bit too heretical for his local pastor.

“He considers himself an Evangelical Protestant and used to attend St. Bartholomew in Manhattan twice a year – on Christmas and Easter. But he has since stopped going – he’s been at odds with the minister. “My minister at St. Bart’s, I don’t like,” he said. “And it’s mutual.” He laughed. “Why is that?” I asked. “They were running a seminar on world religions – they had a rabbi there, they had an Imam there – it was a discussion group,” he said. “Since I’m a professional lecturer, I offered to add the view of parapsychology. And he [the minister] turned it down with a note saying, ‘How can you compare that with what we’re doing?’ And I didn’t think that was very nice. You have to understand, where I’m coming from, if it weren’t for parapsychology, religion wouldn’t have a leg to stand on.”

While many modern Pagans barely know Holzer outside of his books on paranormal phenomena, he played a key role in making Wicca/Witchcraft the world religion it is today. As a writer Holzer certainly veered into sensationalist flights of fancy over the years, but he also connected hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people with Pagan teachers. Holzer also cleared a path in the publishing world that eventually allowed Pagan authors like Margot Adler to write serious examinations of what we now call the “Pagan community”. We owe him recognition and thanks for the work he did on our behalf. May his spirit enjoy his journeys on the other side.

John Michell, hugely influential writer on ley lines, archaeoastronomy, sacred geometry, and Earth mysteries passed away yesterday after a long battle with cancer. Michell came to prominence in the 1960s and 1970s for works like “The View Over Atlantis” and “A Little History of Astro-Archaeology” that had profound reverberations within the New Age, Fortean, and modern Pagan communities.

John Michell

“If any one book put ley lines on the map, re-enchanted the British landscape and made Glastonbury the capital of the New Age it was John Michell’s seminal 1969 tome The View Over Atlantis … probably the most influential book in the history of the hippy/underground movement and one that had far-reaching effects on the study of strange phenomena. Its central argument was that ancient sites (be they tracks, crossroads, standing stones or holy ground) not only formed ley-like alignments but contained a meaningful structure of number and proportion encoded in their design, and that this ‘canon’ of number was somehow related to the then new subject of UFOs as well as to the revelation of ‘forgotten’ knowledge of great significance … it was John Michell who … forged an intellectual bridge between the distant past and the unfolding present and provided satisfying spiritual nourishment that inspired hippies everywhere.”

In their obituary, the Cryptomundo blog hails Michell for providing an ” intellectual roadmap” of modern Fortean thought, while the Daily Grail describes him as a “national treasure” who was “arguably the founder of the modern ‘earth mysteries’ movement.” He was also feted by writers like Gary Lachman and Ronald Hutton for his immense influence on occult and Pagan thought and practice in Britain (not least for his “discovery” of the St. Michael ley-line which connects several Christian and pre-Christian sacred sites). While Michell is still well known in Fortean circles, his contributions may be unrecognized today by many of the modern Pagans who are unwittingly spreading and building upon ideas formulated by the writer. Perhaps his passage can spark a new reexamination of the visionaries who helped build a new cosmology for a new Paganism.

Just a couple quick news items for this morning. First, news has come that the 94-yr-old artist Suzanne Wenger (aka Adunni Olorisa), a convert to Yoruba and tireless defender of traditional religion in Nigeria, has passed away.

The Osun Grove in Osogbo had become a world-class tourism site under her supervision, and had been listed in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s World Heritage List in 2005. The Ataoja of Osogbo, His Royal Majesty, Oba Jimoh Oyewale Matanmi, said Suzanne Wenger lived a fulfilled life and arrangements have been made for her burial, saying the burial rites had begun.  The Jaguna of Osogbo, second in command to the Ataoja, said Adunni Olorisa, had said that no tomb should be built for her saying “She said she wouldn’t want any white people to turn her tomb into a tourist attraction. She has laid a solid foundation for the arts and culture in Osun State. Her works will never perish,”

I linked to a BBC profile of Ms. Wenger from September of last year (which I highly endorse reading). It is of no doubt that she’ll be feted in Nigeria for her work in establishing the Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove as a World Heritage site, and for her ardent and deep connection to Yoruba and the goddess Osun. May she rest in the otherworld, and return to us again.

In sad news of an entirely different variety, a local Texas paper reports on a fringe “spiritual warfare” Christian group that’s making a map of prayer “targets” in their area. Needless to say, anything even vaguely Pagan-sounding or sheltering is making the hit-list prayer map.

The Wildcat Bluff Nature Center is on the prayer map. Repent Amarillo Director David Grisham says since they have a “Earth Circle” they are connected to a pagan group with the same name.  “These things are linked pagans are earth-based religions along with Wicca and other forms of witchcraft are earth-based religions and earth circles are part of that,” Grisham said.  But Wildcat Bluff Nature Center Supervisor Rhoda Breeden says they are completely wrong. “There aren’t any pagan rituals or ceremonies that happen out here so I was really surprised that they were falsely identifying us,” Breeden said. The 806 coffee shop and bar is also on the list. Repent Amarillo says they’re praying for the pagan groups that meet there but employees like Matthew Domzalski, a barista at The 806, says its not his place to discriminate.

This Christian malicious magic-cult is recruiting “soldiers” and intercessory prayer “warriors” to undertake “missions” (that are sometimes “undercover”) to (spiritually) tear down the “demonic strongholds” of Pagan worship. Let’s hope this all stays in the purview of prayer, and doesn’t inspire some of these soldiers to go further. The language of militancy can sometimes blur the distinctions between spiritual action and physical action.

I don’t know if you had heard, but apparently there is a growing and diverse religious movement that is often labeled “Paganism”, and Halloween is, like, a major holiday for many of them. There are months here at The Wild Hunt where hunting down stories is a chore, then October rolls around and I have far too much to appropriately sum up without doing a “news of note” every other day (a prospect I don’t especially relish, I prefer the more sedate once-a-week or so schedule its been on). Let me just assure you that I’m doing my best to stay on top of things, and delivering what I think are the most interesting picks of this journalistic harvest.

Having said all that, let’s do a quick look at the flood of Halloween/Samhain stories involving Pagans. A mix of that runs from the remedial to the sublime. Featuring well-known Pagans, assorted experts and academics, and cast of unknown locals getting their first taste of press attention.

Reuters looks at a Samhain celebration in Milan, Italy, and marvels at the explosive growth of modern Paganism there.

“Organizers say numbers are elusive, but using sources like mailing lists, event registration and journal subscriptions, they place their ranks at between 2,000 and 10,000. The founder of Milan’s Circle of the Crossroads, Davide Marre, remembers when his group numbered “four cats,” an expression for virtually nobody. Six years later, he has 200 members, with conferences, study groups, a magazine, a book, even a monthly bar fest called the Witches’ Café.”

Interestingly, not a single mention of Stregheria, and one of the Pagans they do talk to seems to identify as Celtic. Is British Paganism gaining more traction in Italy than Italian-American Paganism? The piece also sources an article by Francesca Howell from The Pomegranate.

The North Wind (Northern Michigan’s student paper) covers an appearance by Pagan author and NPR journalist Margot Adler, who discusses the growth of the modern Pagan movement since the 60s and 70s.

“Adler kicked off her presentation by telling a humorous anecdote about her first visit to Michigan in the 1980s to appear on a Detroit morning show. Adler explained that she took extra care to look good for the television cameras and had cut herself shaving as she prepared for the event. At the end of the television appearence the audience was allowed to ask questions. ‘A question that came up from the audience was ‘Is that mark on your leg from some ritual?’ I had to explain that, I had just cut myself shaving while getting ready.’”

The headline proclaims that Paganism “continues to expand”, but nothing in the article follows up on that claim. Guess you have to take what you can get when dealing with student papers. The anecdote was good though.

A senior at the Pinkerton Academy has been barred from giving a planned talk on Wicca for the schools “diversity week” after complaints from parents (even though other religiously-themed talks are going forward).

“Pinkerton senior Jerica Haynes may not be able to give the presentation she prepared about the religion of Wicca during Diversity Week this year, but she is still hopeful she can dispel some myths about what it means to be a modern-day practicing witch … Robin Perrin, director of relations management for Pinkerton, said several parents called the school to complain that the presentation was inappropriate. Perrin said the issue for parents was that whole classes sign up for some Diversity Week presentations, and there was a fear that the Wicca presentation would be mandatory for students whose class signed up to attend the presentation.”

The school is currently planning to allow her to do it next week after school, after first performing her talk for a “diversity committee”. Haynes, who is a third-generation Witch, appears to be going along with this, and the school should thank its lucky stars she is. There is certainly grounds here for some sort of discrimination-based lawsuit.

Samhain is usually time for a flood of “meet the Pagans” type articles, and this year won’t disappoint. Burnaby Now interviews Jennifer Thrasher owner of Grimoire’s Books, The Spectator interviews Eau Claire resident Trae Dorn (and cites James Sharpe), The Skyline View attended a talk by Starhawk, The Jambar interviews Kyle Metzger and Torrey Derda, the Boston Phoenix interviews several Pagan students at Boston University, and The Southern Voice interviews Ken “Lord Thespis” Gunter (a member of Lady Sintana’s church).

“Wicca includes the study, respect and celebration of the ebb and flow between male and female, Gunter adds, noting the moon represents the female, while the sun represents the male. Wicca is also a matriarchal religion, where women are held typically in higher regard than male members. There is also room for transgender Wiccans, Gunter says. “We had a transgender woman as a member once and she was a priestess. She lived her life as a woman, so it was simple,” he says.”

The subtitle of this article? Why “Halloween means much more than costumes and candy” of course. If you think that was a lot of articles (and I probably didn’t get all of them), keep in mind we have another week of news stories to go before we hit October 31st.

Finally, I wanted to quickly mention two other articles you might enjoy, The Christian Post gives an unintentional guide to getting your house egged on Halloween night, and VPR marks the passing of Tom “Mr. Halloween” Fagan, founder of Rutland, Vermont’s famous annual Halloween parade, and a man who has appeared as himself in several comic books over the years.

“Tom Fagan was a reporter for the Rutland Herald when he encouraged the city’s recreation department to create the goulish celebration back in 1959. Fagan was crazy about comic books and he worked them into the parade, often dressing up as Batman. He was friends with many comic book writers and he encouraged them to come to Rutland, dress up in costume and appear with him in the parade. In the 1970s, Rutland’s Halloween parade achieved a degree of fame when it was used as the setting of a number of superhero comic books, published by both DC and Marvel. Tom Fagan was himself featured as a character in a number of these stories, usually depicted as an acquaintance of the lead character.”

He will, no doubt, be at his beloved Halloween parade in spirit.

That is all for now, have a great day!

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

That sound you hear is the sound of Rev. Rapid Cabot Freeman’s moral high ground collapsing. Just yesterday I was reporting about how he was possibly discriminated against when his talk at a local library was canceled. Now, in the midst of his story getting wider coverage, Freeman has been arrested for harassing an ex-friend.

“Rusty Freeman, who is also known as the Rev. Rapid Cabot Freeman, was charged with second-degree harassment. Police said on July 12 they received a complaint against Freeman from Kelly Hajduk, who alleged that he was harassing her. A couple of hours before Hajduk filed her complaint Freeman called her residence and she had her friend pick up the phone and tell him to stop calling. Freeman called back immediately and left a voice mail, stating that he was not afraid of the person who told him to stop calling, the warrant said. Hajduk told police that she told Freeman on numerous occasions to stop calling her, but he did not stop, the warrant said. Hajduk said she even got her attorney, Frank Manfredi to send a letter to Freeman, informing him that he is to have no “direct or indirect” contact with her or the matter would be referred to police.”

I guess the lesson here is that publicity is a two-edged knife. If your going to invite the press into your life, make sure you aren’t going to do something that will get you arrested in the process. What might have been Freeman’s big moment in the sun, has instead become an embarrassment for the wider Pagan community.

Speaking of embarrassments, we have a double-dose of Halloween-themed Christian propaganda for you. First the Tucson Citizen runs an editorial from Shaunti Feldhahn about the “dark” and “evil” side of the holiday.

“But many continued to celebrate Halloween for dark purposes. Today, that has translated directly into very real, very evil Oct. 31 witchcraft and satanic ceremonies, which I have heard something about from two friends who were raised by satanist parents.”

Raised by Satanist parents?!? I wonder what they did for Christmas? Feldhahn also quotes veteran anti-Pagan author Steve “What’s the Deal With Wicca” Russo concerning how Halloween can “desensitize” you to evil. Luckily they are just trying to “provide answers”, and not tell you what to believe about the (dark, evil, Satanic) holiday. Meanwhile, The National Catholic Register takes a shot at New Age Oprah fans by interviewing Moira “Ransomed from Darkness” Noonan.

“There is power in these anti-Christian practices and teachings, but the power is not divine. It’s a power that leads us away from Christ by trading in our Judeo-Christian beliefs for a “new” way of thinking about ourselves and the world.”

I always find in fascinating how far-right forms of Christianity inevitably reinforce the spiritual and magical claims of their “enemies”. A tactic that may rally the faithful, but also one that builds up what they say they want to see obliterated. It’s why some Christians are just as eager as some Pagans to believe that Wicca is the fasted growing religion in America.

While I’m on the subject of Christian belief in the occult, we have a doozy of a story from the loony spiritual warfare fringe. It seems that a message from Flo Ellers (a member of the End-Time Handmaidens) claims that Barack Obama’s relatives in Africa are casting malicious spells against John McCain and Sarah Palin.

“…when Obama visited his tribe in ‘06 and as late as Jan. ‘08 he went to every elder’s home which has a “shrine” inside to worship the genie and asked for their blessing. She was told Obama and Odinga were both “destined” before they were born to be president/leader of their nation. They say “he is the chosen one”. She said Obama’s grandmother sacrificed a black and a white chicken to the “goddess of the river” so both whites and blacks will vote for Obama. All Islam loves and worships Obama. The world is mesmerized by him. Oprah’s 200 million followers are out to elect Obama. Also, Dick Morris of Fox News was sent to Kenya to help Odinga run his campaign! I find that unbelievable. The occultists are “weaving lazy 8’s around McCain’s mind to make him look confused and like an idiot”. Bree K. said we need to break these curses off of him that are being sent from Kenya.”

Wow. I mean, really, wow. You see its the Obama-supporting Pagan/Muslim witches in Kenya that are making McCain seem erratic and confused. That can be the only answer. Just wait until they stumble upon Isaac Bonewits’ site. Also: “The End-Time Handmaidens” would be the best name ever for an all-female metal band, just sayin’.

On Faith asks: does religion empower women? Starhawk’s answer? It depends on the religion.

“The Pagan and Goddess traditions are deeply empowering for women. Along with the images of what theologian Carol Christ has called ‘the beneficence of women’s power’, our ritual circles are places of emotional and practical support, where women (and men, too) can find friendship, healing, at times a cheering squad to help us take a new step, at other times, a thoughtful critique to help us make a needed course correction. We create rituals to honor women’s cycles and life changes, celebrating our young girls when they first begin to menstruate and feasting our older women in croning ceremonies at the end of menopause.”

Deepak Chopra’s response is also worth a read.

In a final, sad note, M. Macha Nightmare marks the passing of Sequoia Greenfield. Priestess, activist, and aviator, Greenfield was one of the first members of Z Budapest’s Susan B. Anthony Coven No. 1.

“This is a woman who traveled the world, mostly alone. I remember when, on her first trip to India, she wrote wonderful travelogues to her friends describing her experiences. (This was before the Internet.) She once described how she was in an unfamiliar small village in India, when there was a celebration to a Hindu goddess (name lost in the recesses of my senior mind), the villagers grabbed her and put her at the head of their procession. Evidently, that particular goddess had red hair and here came this stranger with red hair just on the goddess’ feast day, so I guess they considered Sequoia to be the goddess incarnate.”

May she rest in the arms of the Goddess, and return to us again.

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

Articles, essays, and thoughts of note from the Pagan blogosphere.

We start off with some sad news. M. Macha Nightmare and T. Thorn Coyle have posted moving tributes to their friend Tara Webster, priestess of Hecate, and Soror Adessa of the Open Source Order of the Golden Dawn. Webster passed away on October 8th after a long struggle with brain cancer. Thorn, who was at Webster’s side during her passing, recounts how Hecate came to claim her.

“After a couple of hours of singing, the call came inside of me. A chant arose to one whom I have barely met. Your Matron tapped my shoulderblades. I wrote a chant for Her, for you. We sang that chant. We sang and sang. I left the room to grasp the counterpoint. When I came back in to sing it, S. said “Her breathing has really changed. We need to get someone.” I paused. You were not breathing. The spaces between breath were big enough to hold the stars. All gathered, we chanted the Heart Sutra. Over and over, as you crossed. Hecate took you. Your spirit opened the door we had closed. Literally. It swung open and out you went. Mighty priestess. So skilled. So gorgeous. You lay in state in your rhinestone tiara, naked, as we blessed you.”

Macha recounts Webster’s participation in the Goddess 2000 project, and their shared connection with an old Pagan cartoon.

“…when Tara and I first met, we discovered we had a lot in common in terms of both approach and praxis. My experiences with my first coven, the Holy Terrors*, paralleled hers in many ways. I spoke of a cartoon published in an East Coast Pagan rag, Harvest (defunct), in the ’80s that we Holy Terrors couldn’t believe was so like we were. When we HTs first discovered this cartoon, we rolled around laughing. No one we knew subscribed to Harvest (if it even had subscriptions). We treasured our photocopies of the few episodes we’d found; later I found an opportunity to mail away for better copies of a full set. The cartoon was the Death Crones, and Tara was part of the Flaming Crones, the circle from which this cartoon arose!”

May Tara Webster rest in the arms of Hecate. We here at The Wild Hunt offer our most sincere condolences.

Over at Letter From Hardscrabble Creek, Chas Clifton reports on the publication of a book that will be sure to please many long-time Pagan community members.

“‘Green Egg Omelette: An Anthology of Art and Articles from the Legendary Pagan Journal’ will be shipping soon and can be pre-ordered from Amazon with the link above or from the publisher. Oberon Zell did the heavy lifting: tracking down long-lost contributors, making editorial decisions, and laying out the pages. I wrote a general introduction and shorter introductions for each chapter.”

A sure treasure-trove of classic Pagan writing. I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy. As for the Green Egg itself, while the print magazine is long-gone, it still survives as a online ‘zine. Also, while you’re at Chas Clifton’s blog, be sure to check out his post about water witchery.

Author Sarah Kate Istra Winter (aka Erl Queen on LJ) links to an interview she gave for the online e-zine Sequential Tart.

“I do think the myths are important. For one thing, they are usually our first introduction to the gods. Sure, it’s extremely important to begin forging relationships yourself, to learn of the gods directly, from experience. But that’s a long process. And many people have a hard time relying on that type of experiential knowledge. The myths tell us about the collective beliefs and experiences of the people who first worshiped our gods. Even if the stories often conflict with each other, even if one can’t take everything literally, an overall picture emerges of the gods’ traits, likes and dislikes, mannerisms, etc. It’s an important foundation. From cult practice (of course, another important foundation for the modern religion), we might learn that Apollon left Delphi each winter and the oracles ceased. But it is from myth that we learn why, and where He goes (Hyperborea), and what that place is like.”

You can find more information about Winter’s book, “KHARIS: Hellenic Polytheism Explored”, at her web site.

Medusa Coils reports that the Glastonbury Goddess Temple has succeeded in acquiring St. Benedict’s Church Hall from the Church of England for the purpose of Goddess-oriented worship and rites of passage.

“Glastonbury Goddess Temple was able to come to an agreement with St. Ben’s Parish Council regarding the previous restrictions on the use of the Hall, which was owned by the Church of England and persisted even after the sale of the Hall. St. Ben’s Parish Council has agreed to allow use of the Hall “without let or hindrance” for Goddess activities including ceremonies, courses, workshops, and other community activities, as well as a dedicated space for Pagan marriage ceremonies and handfastings.”

You can read more about this story, and the plans Glastonbury Goddess Temple has for the space, here.

In a final note, The Pagan Prattle rightfully mocks “what passes for sane in some parts of the world”. Specifically the recent story of a college student who accused an English teacher of blasphemy, and threatened to set her on fire for being a witch.

“A 20-year-old male student has been expelled from an adult education college after he poured liquid over his English Literature teacher and threatened her with a lighter and a cigarette. He accused her of being a witch. According to another report, Najor allegedly told police that he was trying to kill her by pouring holy water over her. More detail about the incident is given, suggesting that Najor was inspired by his Christian faith…”

The young man in question, Darin Najor, while initially detained in a psychiatric hospital, is now facing assault charges. One wonders if he attends some sort of church, or if this was his own special blend of crazy.

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