Top Story: A high school industrial arts teacher in Iowa has been put on temporary leave in the wake of a controversy concerning a student who was told to stop building a Wiccan altar in shop class. Dale Halferty of Guthrie Center High School claims he was simply enforcing the separation of Church and State, and that he had prevented a Christian from building a cross previously, but school officials claim that neither of those actions actually line up with guidelines regarding religious expression at school.

“His viewpoint: “We as Christians don’t get to have our say during school time, so why should he?” School officials say Christians actually do get to express themselves in the same way. More than one school policy, as well as state and federal law, prohibit discrimination against students who express religious beliefs through school assignments. Superintendent Steve Smith and Principal Garold Thomas said they placed Halferty on leave while they conferred with the school’s attorney to decide what to do.”

In other words, Halferty was imposing his distorted idea of what the guidelines were on his students, and he makes his feelings about Wicca quite plain, calling it “terrible for our kids” because it will lead to a “dark and violent life”.  He also has the bizarre belief that school tax dollars are meant to “save” kids from Pagan religion. Meanwhile, thanks to this incident, a backlash against the Wiccan student has materialized, with 70 of the 185 students signing a petition saying they don’t want witchcraft practiced at their school.

“Both [Superintendent Steve] Smith and [Principal Garold] Thomas said the incident has become emotional for the high school’s 185 students: Almost 70 signed a petition late last week saying they didn’t want witchcraft practiced at the school.”I think it’s fear based on some of the old ideas people had about witchcraft,” Smith said. “It’s fear and a lack of knowledge about the unknown.” Neither Smith nor school officials identified the student at the center of the controversy, and the boy’s father declined a request made through Thomas to be interviewed. Smith acknowledged that some people have expressed fears about satanism or sacrifices.”

Locals are now engaged in hand-wringing over the school’s excessive tolerance, and the bare-bones story, without the context of Halferty’s unique views on religion at school, has hit the Associated Press wires. So expect a lot more commentary and furor over this situation in the near future. As for the high school senior, what chance does he now have for finishing out his school year without harassment and intimidation? When the student body has become a mob against him, can things truly return to normal?

Checking in With the Third Wave: AlterNet takes a broad look at the New Apostolic Reformation, aka the Third Wave of the Holy Spirit, a protestant Charismatic/Pentecostal Christian hybrid led by “Convening Apostle” C. Peter Wagner. The movement became (in)famous in recent years thanks to politician/pundit Sarah Palin’s long membership and association with the group, which places a heavy emphasis on spiritual warfare, and brags about killing and maiming Catholics and Pagans with their prayer. Now reporter Bill Berkowitz probes NAR’s deep influence with ultra-conservative politicians like Michele Bachmann (involved in anti-Pagan groups), Sam Brownback, and Jim DeMint, and their role in initiatives like California’s Proposition 8.

“In the days leading up to the historic vote on health-care reform in the Senate, Apostle Lou Engle led the Family Research Council’s “Prayercast” against health-care reform, a Webcast featuring Republican Senators Jim DeMint (S.C.) and Sam Brownback (Kans.), and Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.). Earlier in the year, Engle, who leads the group TheCall, prayed over Newt Gingrich at a Virginia event called Rediscovering God in America. In 2008, Engle, at an event he staged at San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium, advocated acts of Christian martyrdom to end abortion and same-sex marriage. This “apostle” claims LGBT people are possessed by demons.”

You may remember that I covered that “Rediscovering God in America” event, it’s the one where Newt Gingrich claimed America was “surrounded by paganism”. Berkowitz goes on to interview Rachel Tabachnick, who writes for Talk2Action, and who has done a remarkable amount of research into the NAR/Third Wave movement. Here’s her follow-up commentary on Berkowitz’s article/interview, and a resource directory of the NAR/Third Wave movement. As I’ve intimated here before, this movement is rabidly anti-Pagan, and would have no compunctions about using their political and fiscal muscle against us. Their rise to power is deeply troubling, because unlike the “Moral Majority” or “Religious Right” of ages past their agenda isn’t limited to enacting conservative social policy, but instead calls for the aggressive spiritual destruction of all who they see as enemies (and anyone who worships the “Queen of Heaven” is considered their enemy). So let’s keep our eyes open, and be aware  of who your elected representatives are associating themselves with.

War of Words in South Africa: The South African Pagan Rights Alliance (SAPRA) has lodged a complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission against allegedly libelous statements made by Traditional Healers Organization national coordinator Phephisile Maseko.

“Maseko’s repeated allegation that muthi murderers are “witches” practicing “witchcraft” remains untrue and defamatory. This Alliance demands that the South African Human Rights Commission (1.) properly investigates repeated libelous allegations made by Phephisile Maseko against South African Witches, (2.) makes a ruling regarding the innocence of self-identified Witches with regard to allegations made by Maseko that we are responsible for the commission of muthi murders, and (3.) instructs the Traditional Healers Organization national coordinator to cease making libelous statements against South African Witches.”

However, Maseko is unmoved by SAPRA’s position concerning the use of the word “witch”, saying their complaint amounts to little more than white privilege.

“Let’s be honest here — a witch is a witch and everybody in the country knows that. Publicly calling yourself a witch in South Africa smacks of white privilege. In a village or township, you’d be dead even before completing your proclamation. Sapra must accept that we speak different languages and live in different areas”

This latest development seems to be driving a wedge between South Africa’s traditional healers and South Africa’s Pagan community. Despite my sympathies towards the Pagans in South Africa, it is rather plain that Maseko and SAPRA are using the term “witch” in very different contexts, and that the two sides are talking past each other. While I don’t agree with South African Parliament member, and out Pagan, Adrian Williams that they should abandon the term “witch” in order to foster better relations with traditional healers, there must be some sort of understanding that can be reached between the two communities regarding terminology. Let’s hope that cooler heads prevail.

How to Become the Last Great Pagan: Cristiana Sogno, Ph.D., assistant professor of classics at Fordham University explains how 4th century Roman statesman Quintus Aurelius Symmachus became known as the “last great pagan”.

“As it turns out, that dubious moniker was foisted on Symmachus by allies of his most prominent rival, St. Ambrose, the bishop of Milan, according to Cristiana Sogno, Ph.D., assistant professor of classics at Fordham. In her presentation on Jan. 27, “How Did Symmachus Become the Last Great Pagan?” Sogno explained that Symmachus was the victim of a classic political tactic—victors extolling the strength of their opponents to make their own accomplishments seem even greater. The seeds of the nickname were sown in a report, or relatio, issued in 384 A.D. to the 12-year-old Western emperor, Valentinian II, in which Symmachus mounted a defense of the traditional religion of Rome. “There can be little doubt that the relatio is a beautifully constructed speech, and by far the most appealing piece of writing produced by Symmachus. Its compelling plea for religious toleration—in contrast with the almost fanatical intolerance that transpires from St. Ambrose—makes the text closer to the sensibilities of 21st century readers,” she said. The problem, Sogno said, is that Symmachus never published it.”

So there you are, posthumous praise from Christians looking to make their own victories more impressive hoisted a humble statesman and man of letters into lasting prominence. Luckily we are now living in an age where the term “last great pagan” is increasingly outdated. We can argue as to who among our growing numbers are truly “great”, but we most likely won’t have to worry about there being a “last” great pagan thinker any time soon.

The Horror of Pagan Felt: Behold! The Muppet Wicker Man Comic.

Funny yet deeply disturbing at the same time.

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

Top Story: Well, that didn’t take long. While many have been pleased with the Air Force Academy’s recent turn towards accommodation for minority faiths in the wake of accusations that an aggressive and pervasive evangelical Christianity was creating a hostile environment for non-Christians, it seems that some aren’t so sanguine regarding recent changes. With national headlines touting a newly installed stone circle for Pagan cadets, some enterprising Christians decided it needed a finishing touch.

“The Air Force Academy, stung several years ago by accusations of Christian bias, has built a new outdoor worship area for pagans and other practitioners of Earth-based religions. But its opening, heralded as a sign of a more tolerant religious climate at the academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., was marred by the discovery two weeks ago of a large wooden cross placed there. ”We’ve been making great progress at the Air Force Academy. This is clearly a setback,” said Mikey Weinstein, a 1977 graduate of the academy. He is founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, and has often tangled with the academy over such issues.”

While Weinstein is criticizing academy leadership for not informing cadets of the incident, he has praised Lt. Gen. Mike Gould for “acting swiftly and decisively” to ensure it doesn’t happen again. As for the act of “desecration” itself, one could argue that since the circle hasn’t been officially dedicated yet (that happens in March), there was nothing to desecrate. But like cheap gifts, it’s the thought that counts. One could only imagine the outpouring of rage had some anonymous Pagans placed a pentacle or Thor’s hammer inside the Christian chapel.

In Other News:

Patrick McCollum v. California: For some more background concerning the ongoing legal battle to win equal treatment for minority faiths in California, check out AREN’s just-posted interview with Patrick McCollum. In it, McCollum addresses many of the questions that have been emerged since this case has gained wider attention.

“Well, first let me say that I do have a legal right to bring this case forward, and that there’s lots of precedent to support that argument. That’s why I am before the 9th circuit court of appeals. Secondly, let me clear the record, the Pagan prisoners also brought this case forward in conjunction with me, and have been Plaintiffs in the case all along. The judge at the District Court level ruled that neither I nor the Pagan inmates had the right to bring it forward, go figure! What’s even more important to note, is that the State’s attorney general’s office, has made the argument that religion in California is two-tiered, and that the five state faiths (the first tiered faiths) are afforded all of the equal rights and protections granted under the Constitution, but that all other faiths including Pagans, are second tier … and are only afforded lesser rights, similar to one another. It is this concept that Pagans and other minority faiths are somehow less endowed, that I am fighting to overcome.”

I’d also like to note that I have contacted the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for an official comment on these latest developments, and have yet to receive any word back.

In a somewhat related note, I’d also like to mention that Patrick McCollum, on Imbolc, was installed to the Executive Board of Directors of a United Nations NGO, Children Of The Earth.

“This organization focuses on international youth utilizing spirituality as a tool, to bring about positive change in approaching many of the world’s problems. There are chapters across the world. While the Executive Board is composed of a small number of people, I feel honored and humbled to be included in the company of such distinguished individuals as a State Senator, the Speech Writer for Dr. Martin Luther King, and other similarly situated persons.”

Congratulations to Patrick! You can find out more about Children of the Earth at their web site.

African Pagans Against Witch Hunts: The South African Pagan Rights Alliance & South African Pagan Council are gearing up  for the 3rd annual “30 days of advocacy against Witch-hunts in Africa” from 29 March to 27 April 2010.

“The 2010 campaign is aimed at petitioning the African Union General Assembly and the Pan-African Parliament, to address the ongoing witchcraft hysteria in Africa, through constructive and humane programmes that seek to entrench and strengthen human rights and human dignity, instead of seeking to suppress witchcraft or ignore ongoing human rights abuses within member countries.”

Supporters of their campaign can sign a petition, or join the Facebook group. Further plans and actions will be announced closer to the start of the campaign. You can contact TouchStone Advocacy for more information on how to help.

Vodouisants Plan Memorial in Haiti: Max Beauvoir, Augustin St. Clou, and other Vodou leaders in Haiti are planning a national memorial service, funeral rites for the estimated 150,000 dead, and a week of scheduled mourning.

A week of mourning is scheduled to begin as early as next week with a service in front of the destroyed presidential palace. The event will include a traditional voodoo funeral rite for the more than 150,000 people who died in last month’s earthquake, said Max Beauvoir, the supreme priest of Haitian voodoo. Roman Catholic and Protestant leaders have also been invited to participate. ”We want to honour all those who disappeared, but we also want to make it a celebration of life, so that the people can regain their strength,” Beauvoir told Canwest News Service in a phone interview Tuesday evening. “Because life must go on.”

While Vodou practitioners try to move past this tragedy and begin rebuilding, mainstream media seems increasingly fascinated with this oft-misunderstood faith. National Geographic interviews Wade “The Serpent and the Rainbow” Davis about Vodou, misconceptions, and Pat Robertson. He also anticipates the very memorial service now being planned.

“All people in all cultures honor the dead, and the fact that the sheer scale of the disaster has precluded the possibility of proper ritual burials will be a source of concern and sadness to all Haitians. Perhaps in time some of this grief may be released in a ceremony of national remembrance that will honor all who have been lost. For now the rest of us, the entire global community, must do everything we can to support the living and facilitate the rebirth of a nation that has given so much to the world.”

While some continue to peddle misinformation and lies about this faith, a strong pro-Vodou voice is emerging, and we may find a Vodou in post-earthquake Haiti that is unafraid to confront its critics or exist in the public eye.

Skip Having Breakfast With The Family: A growing number of voices are urging President Obama to either boycott the National Prayer Breakfast, or to use that opportunity to criticize the sponsoring group The Family/The Fellowship, for their support of Uganda’s notorious “kill the gays” bill.

You can read more about “The Family” and their theocratic agenda in my interview with journalist Jeff Sharlet, here. So far it seems unlikely that Obama will snub the prayer breakfast, which has been attended by every president since Eisenhower, but there is a faint hope that he will criticize the sponsors. I suppose we’ll have to wait and see.

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

Top Story: While the mainstream media has been generally focused on controversial statements from Harry Reid in John Heilemann and Mark Halperin’s “Game Change,” a new book about the 2008 presidential election, there are some other surprising revelations to be found. For instance, did you know that Rielle Hunter, who famously had an affair with presidential candidate John Edwards (and most likely bore his child), was (allegedly) Pagan?

“There was nothing legit, however, about Hunter’s behavior. It was freaky, wildly inappropriate, and all too visible. She flirted outlandishly with every man she met. She spouted New Age babble, rambled on about astrology and reincarnation, and announced to people she had just met, “I’m a witch.” But mostly, she fixated on Edwards. She told him that he had “the power to change the world,” that “the people will follow you.” She told him that he could be as great a leader as Gandhi or Martin Luther King Jr. She told him, “You’re so real. You just need to get your staff out of your way.” She reinforced everything he already believed, told him everything he wanted to hear.”

Not exactly the kind of revelation of modern Pagan involvement in national politics one hopes for. Then again, if you believe everything in the book excerpt about the Edwards campaign, Hunter was hardly the most crazy element in that bizarre love triangle. Hunter’s life seems to have always skirted fame and notoriety, but when her moment in the sun finally arrived it was ultimately as an infamous footnote in a historic presidential election.

In Other News: The particularly brutal murder of an elderly woman in South Africa has some calling once again for laws banning the practice of witchcraft in the country. Columnist Michael Trapido argues that the infringements on free expression such a law would create are a small price to pay for greater safety.

“So until such time as someone can put forward a better suggestion for protecting people accused of witchcraft — and not the current law which makes it an offence to call someone a witch — legislation to make it a criminal offence to be a witch seems to be the only answer. In tandem that anyone now possessed of this legal channel to accuse witches, who practices self-help, be given the stiffest possible sentences available to a court faced with that charge. Denying some form of religious freedom is very ugly but what happened to an 81-year-old woman and many others like her is far uglier.”

So in the course of attempting to stop witchcraft-related murders, Trapido would support a law that is so broadly worded that it essentially bans non-violent religions like Wicca. That, I suppose, wouldn’t be such a large issue except for the fact that there is a thriving Pagan community in South Africa. I’m told that the South African Pagan Rights Alliance will be releasing a statement on the matter soon, but they have made their position regarding witchcraft bans quite clear before.

“Witchcraft in South Africa is a recognized Pagan religion. Most Pagans in South Africa self-define as Witches – as adherents of the religion of Witchcraft. Every South African citizen has the right to freedom of religion and belief, including the right to proselytize their religious beliefs should they choose to do so. This constitutional right includes not only the right of religious communities to define themselves and their own religion, but also to challenge anything they may perceive as harmful to themselves and their religious communities.”

Further, the South African Pagan Council is a recognized Religious Organization with SA Home Affairs and SA Revenue Services. So to enact the “solution” of banning “witchcraft” they would have to knowingly outlaw a religion they have previously acknowledged as deserving legal recognition. These murders are horrible, but the solution is education, aid, and enforcement of existing laws, not arbitrary (and discriminatory) new laws. I fear Ben Franklin would be rolling in his grave at Trapido’s “ugly” solution. I think the country of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu can do far better than reactionary attempts to outlaw a belief in hopes it will solve the problem.

A group of lawyers, scholars, activists, and religious leaders from the across the political spectrum have collaborated on a new statement encapsulating the current understandings of Church-State law and freedom of expression in America.

“As the role of religion in public life continues to spark intense political debate and high-profile court cases, a group of diverse leaders from religious and secular organizations has issued the most comprehensive joint statement of current law to date on legal issues dividing church and state. Muslim, Jewish, Sikh and Christian leaders from the evangelical, mainline and Catholic traditions joined with civil liberties leaders to draft Religious Expression in American Public Life: A Joint Statement of Current Law, released Tuesday at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C.”

A project of the Wake Forest University Divinity School’s Center for Religion and Public Affairs, the statement should be required reading for anyone concerned about legal decisions made regarding religious expression in America. You can download the 34-page PDF file, here. Almost all of the legal issues facing Pagans today in our schools, prisons, military, and the workplace are touched on in the document. Don’t miss out!

Kathy Nance gives us an update on the ceremonial rattles created by Pagan artist Julee Higginbotham for the Parliament of the World’s Religions. After being blessed and distributed by the Pagans at the Parliament, they ended up being gifted to several key spiritual/religious leaders, including the Dalai Lama.

And each was blessed at Pagan prayer circles in St. Louis, Melbourne Pagan events, and the Parliament itself. At each circle, the hope that the gifts would convey messages of love and unity were repeated. On the next to last day of the event, before coffee and breakfast, came word that the Dalai Lama’s personal secretary was on his way down to pick up a shaker. River, a Pagan from Missouri, handed over the gift. It was wrapped in cloth and twine used at the Pagan Peace Ritual. “The shakers passed through hundreds of hands with blessings for world peace and for understanding between different yet similar religions,” River said. “We were all tremendously moved that we were able to give one to the Dalai Lama.”

In addition to the Dalai Lama, shakers were gifted to His Majesty Robert Daagbo Hounoun, world wide leader of the Vodun Hwendo faith,  Professor “Auntie” Joy Murphy Wandin, AO Senior Woman of the Wurundjeri People, and “Uncle Bob” Randall, Yankunytjatjara Elder and Traditional Owner of Uluru (Ayers Rock). According to Parliament Board of Trustees member Angie Buchanan, the shakers “opened many doors” between Pagan delegates and indigenous communities across the world.

In a final note, famous Los Angeles Buddhist/New Age/metaphysical bookstore Bodhi Tree is closing down. LA Daily reports that the close came about due to rising costs, rising taxes, and a widely dispersed market.

“Books on Wicca and Astrology and Native American shamanism used to be tough to find. But now every Borders and Barnes & Noble carries a significant selection of religious, spiritual and New Age literature. And what can’t be bought at a bricks and mortar shop can undoubtedly be found online at Amazon. For cheap.”

Where once Pagans, New Agers, occultists, and Buddhists would often be forced to shop at the only place in town that carried “their” kind of books, thanks to the Internet it’s easier than ever to get a hold of material that you find interesting. Indeed, the “community” created around these stores were almost always due to necessity, not a shared theology, practice, or even politics. It was inevitable that as these groups grew into their own, and materials became easier to obtain, the “New Age store” would suffer as a consequence. While there is a part of me that has a somewhat romanticized view of that era, catching only the tail-end of it in the 1990s, I also wouldn’t trade that time for what we have now.

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

I’m back from the wilds of Florida! Before I begin my lengthy Pagan-news catch-up, I’d like to thank the folks at the Florida Pagan Gathering who were excellent hosts, and all the folks who attended my talks, they made my first time at such a gathering a truly memorable one. As time allows, I hope to write further about my experiences there, but for now it’s down to brass tacks!

We start off with the horrible tragedy that occurred when U.S. Army major Nidal Malik Hasan opened fire on a military processing center at Fort Hood in Texas, killing 13 people and wounding several more. For an in-depth analysis of the various religious angles in this story, I urge all of you to check out the recent posts at Get Religion dealing with the matter, meanwhile I’d like to briefly explore a Pagan angle that has emerged since the incident. As many of you may know, Fort Hood is famous within our communities for its large and active Pagan population (more than 150 live in and around Fort Hood). It is the Fort Hood Pagans who weathered a storm of controversy that prompted George W. Bush to famously opine back in 1999 that “witchcraft isn’t a religion”. So when I heard of the shooting in Florida my first instinct was to ask after the safety of our Pagan troops, luckily a reliable source assured me that none were harmed during the incident. But while no Pagan soldiers or their families were hurt or killed in the rampage, the loss and shock following such an event can often be crippling, so Circle Sanctuary has stepped up to offer counseling to local Pagans stressed by the tragedy.

“A team of Pagan spiritual counselors has been formed by Circle Sanctuary to provide free telephone counseling support this month for Pagans, Wiccans, Druids, Heathens, Pantheists, and other Nature religion practitioners distressed by the shootings at Fort Hood in Texas this past Thursday … Circle Sanctuary formed this Pagan counseling support team as part of its services to Wiccans, Druids, Heathens, and other Pagans in the US Military. This special response team consists of sixteen Pagan leaders from across the nation who are among those doing various forms of Pagan ministry through Circle Sanctuary. The team is collaborating with other Pagan leaders in the Fort Hood area in providing help. Circle Sanctuary is offering free Pagan oriented counseling by telephone to supplement grief counseling resources at Fort Hood. Circle Sanctuary’s Fort Hood Tragedy response counseling services are for Pagans in and around Fort Hood as well as for Pagans at other US military installations and elsewhere who have been adversely impacted by the Fort Hood shootings. The counseling work being offered is specific to distress resulting from the Fort Hood shootings and will be offered throughout the month on November.”

You can find contact information for the support team, here. I’m glad to see a national Pagan organization willing to jump into action in times of hardship and need, blessings on Circle Sanctuary for this quick response. You can be sure that if any further Pagan angles emerge to this story I’ll do my best to bring them to your attention.

Let’s turn to the ongoing reverberations caused by Republican Heathen Dan Halloran getting elected to the New York City Council. Double X blog the XX Factor claims that Paganism was the real winner that night, while the New York Times analyzes the demographics of Halloran’s win. Meanwhile, a blog called “Queens Crap” unearths a document that pretty convincingly proves that Democratic opponent Kevin Kim was indeed trying to use Halloran’s religion against him in the race.

“…not only is it a new low, but making it appear that the church mailed these out to voters could have serious consequences for both the church and the candidate. It puts the church’s 501c3 in jeopardy and opens up the possibility that Kim could be prosecuted for mail fraud. Federal postal rules prohibit printing an address other than your own on a piece of mail bearing your prepaid postage stamp.”

You can read the document, here. While accusations of mud-slinging came from both camps, it appeared that Kim participated to a larger scale, and that the (overwhelming Democratic) voters of that district, sick of the mud-slinging, decided to send a message. Again, more proof that we may be seeing religion-fatigue on the part of voters? Making Paganism not so much the political liability some may think it to be? As for Halloran, we continue to look forward to paying close attention to his career.

Did you realize it’s been ten years since Ronald Hutton’s “Triumph of the Moon” was first published and changed the way we look at Pagan scholarship and the history of Wicca? To celebrate that anniversary Hidden Publishing has released a collection of essays entitled “Ten Years of Triumph of the Moon”.

“Ten years on from the groundbreaking Triumph of the Moon: A history of Modern Pagan Witchcraft by Professor Ronald Hutton, a selection of worldwide scholars, some ‘big names; some newer in the field, with nearly two centuries of hands-on pagan research experience between them, present a collection of researches inspired by, deriving from or just celebrating the immense impact of that seminal book. The topics cover many historical periods, many academic disciplines and it provides a wealth of information of use to academic scholar and interested freelance reader alike. Includes an extended essay by Ronald Hutton on the history of such scholarship, the state of it today and some of his thoughts for the future.”

The collection includes essays from Sabina “Witching Culture” Magliocco, Caroline Tully, Henrik “Western Esotericism and Rituals of Initiation” Bogdan, Phillip Bernhardt-House, and Ronald Hutton himself. Sounds like a must-have to me!

Turning to film, Fangoria interviews Robin Hardy about the upcoming sequel/companion to “The Wicker Man”, now entitled “The Wicker Tree”, and currently filming.

“It isn’t a sequel or a prequel, it’s another film in the same vein,” he says. “What I’m interested in saying is that this approach still works. The way THE WICKER MAN was constructed and the way most horror films today are constructed are totally different, and I believe it was a quite interesting alternative. It makes the film more intriguing. You can have more things in it than just horror.”

Hardy goes into some depth about how modern gore-fest “horror” movies aren’t really all that scary, and how the build-up of suspense along with the use of music and humor can often lead to a more successful film. I’m sure the folks raking in the dough from the ultra-low-budget film “Paranormal Activity” agree.

Showing how complex the issues can be when an increasingly global modern Paganism meets the current global epidemic of witch-killings, the South African Pagan Rights Alliance has put out a press release criticizing the International Humanist and Ethical Union’s recommendation to the UN that law suppressing the practice of witchcraft be enacted.

“The call for the “fight against the twin evils of those practising witchcraft and those claiming to find and cure witches in Africa”, encourages not only the suppression of those using the excuse of so-called “witchcraft” to commit criminal acts, it also has the unfortunate effect of encouraging African governments to suppress Witchcraft as identified by actual self-identified adherents of the Craft and Religion of Witchcraft. Many South Africans already openly identify themselves as Witches. Witches are already a visible and recognizable religious minority in Southern Africa. We have our own religious council, represented on various interfaith bodies, and we have our own government appointed religious marriage officers. A blanket and unqualified call for the suppression of “Witchcraft” in Africa is a call for the suppression of religious belief, something our own constitution protects under freedom of religion and association clauses in our Bill of Rights.”

SAPRA points out that the most witchcraft-murders in South Africa are against alleged practitioners, not perpetrated by them. That “muti” murders, when carried out, aren’t done by “witches”, but instead by traditional herbalists, and that blanket statements of the “twin evils” only encourages laws that will outlaw Wicca alongside African conceptions of witchcraft. One can certainly understand why a humanist organization might equally damn these two separate phenomena as one madness, but I wonder if other NGOs and officials are striving to “equalize” muti murders with the mainly Christian-led network of anti-witchcraft forces in order to not offend the politically and fiscally powerful churches. It may be a mater that needs closer investigation.

In a final note, I received word that on October 28th scholar Owen S. Rachleff passed away due to complications from Parkinsons. Rachleff wrote a scathingly critical work in the early 1970s on the occult and modern Pagan movement entitled “The Occult Conceit”, which won him the ire of many Pagans and occultists at the time. Quotes like the following in this 1972 article  of  Time Magazine didn’t help much either.

“Most occultniks,” says Rachleff, “are either frauds of the intellectual and/or financial variety, or disturbed individuals who frequently mistake psychosis for psychic phenomena.”

Despite his dim view of occult practitioners, he was willing to engage with them and  went on a nationally syndicated radio program in December 1973 with practicing Witch Leo Martello. This was, according to author Michael Lloyd, very likely the first nationally broadcast debate on the subject of Witchcraft and the occult between a skeptic and a practicing Witch. It no doubt helped spread word of modern Paganism, and exposed many to its ideas and concepts. So while Rachleff was a skeptic and a critic, he also played a vital part in our history in America.

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

Yesterday a coalition of U.N. officials, NGOs, and representatives from affected countries addressed the United Nations asking for governments to face the full extent of witch hunts across the world. Far from being a localized phenomenon in “primitive” or isolated villages, witch hunts and witch killings are now global in nature and spreading.

(Trigger Warning!) An Indian “witch” being beaten and paraded through her village.

“Murder and persecution of women and children accused of being witches is spreading around the world and destroying the lives of millions of people, experts said Wednesday … “This is becoming an international problem — it is a form of persecution and violence that is spreading around the globe,” Jeff Crisp of the U.N.’s refugee agency UNHCR told a seminar organized by human rights officials of the world body.”

According to some U.N. experts tracking the issue “at least” tens of thousands have died due to witch hunts, while millions have been beaten, abused, isolated, and turned into refugees. While economic hardship is given as a reason for the recent escalation in witch-related violence, experts at the UNHCR also claim that the rise can also be attributed to”religious practitioners” who exploit local fears and superstitions.

“Some religious practitioners make a living from exorcising alleged witches and charging exorbitant fees to those who request the ritual. In Foxcroft’s experience, the most vulnerable members of society – children and the elderly – are often the victims of these accusations.”

Who, exactly, are these “religious practitioners”? The IHEU is far more specific.

“Witchcraft is still widely practiced in many countries in Africa by witchdoctors who often use human body parts in their spells. Some witchdoctors employ gangs of young men to attack and kill victims, often young children, for their body parts, which are frequently removed while the victim is still alive. An estimated 300 people are killed each year in South Africa alone as a result of this practice. But horrific though this practice is, it is only part of the problem. In Nigeria, in both the Muslim North and the Christian South, witch hunts are not uncommon and this has led to a second form of abuse. Some unscrupulous pastors, many linked to Pentecostal churches, have a lucrative trade in making unfounded accusations of witchcraft against young children. [The pastors then agree to “cure” the witches for a substantial fee. Many children are being ostracized and abandoned by their parents as a result of these accusations.]“

These Christian pastors aren’t isolated to Africa, they tour churches in America bragging about their battles with the occult, and have established ministries in Ireland and the UK. Commingling with an increasing anti-occult fervor among some Western Christian groups. Meanwhile, actual modern Pagan communities in places like India and South Africa are facing the possible ramifications of intensifying witch-hunts and witch persecutions.

If this trend isn’t seriously addressed soon, we may find this madness turning its eye towards “safe” occultists and Pagans in places like America, the UK, Australia, Brazil, and Canada. Don’t think it could happen? All it takes is a pseudo-militant occult-fighting Christian movement cross-pollinating with a reviving “Satanic Ritual Abuse” movement, stir in some anti-government populist anger and frustration, and you have all the makings for an American witch-lynching.

“When Bill Sparkman told retired trooper Gilbert Acciardo that he was going door-to-door collecting census data in rural Kentucky, the former cop drew on years of experience for a warning: “Be careful.” The 51-year-old Sparkman was found this month hanged from a tree near a Kentucky cemetery with the word “fed” scrawled on his chest, a law enforcement official said Wednesday, and the FBI is investigating whether he was a victim of anti-government sentiment.”

The anger and hardship that cries out for a scapegoat is right here in our backyard. Right now “socialism” or “the government” may be the popular/populist nightmare,  but that can change. A global epidemic of witch-hunts is our issue, not because we share some theological bond with a “witch” killed in Nigeria, or imprisoned in Saudi Arabia, but because we don’t live in an enlightened vacuum, free from the troubles of the “third world”. Nor will outraged Internet petitions stem the tide, what we need is a concerted international campaign of education, aid, and better policing in the “hot” spots like Nepal, Kenya, India, and Nigeria. Those who have grown powerful on witch-hunting rhetoric won’t go quietly, and only the surety of secular law can ensure some semblance of safety. Meanwhile, those of us who are “safe” need to realize that what happens to “witches” in India and Papua New Guinea is no longer a string of  isolated incidents that will always stay “over there”. A “global” problem means it could indeed happen here, and perhaps sooner than any of us would want to admit.

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

In South Africa, News 24 interviews Damon Leff of the South African Pagan Rights Alliance (SAPRA) concerning recent comments by ANC MP Adrian Williams (an “out” Pagan politician) that modern Pagans in South Africa should abandon attempts to reclaim the term “Witch” due to its (sometimes violently) negative associations in the country.

“SAPRA rejected Williams’s views on the use of the word “witch”, saying communities must be educated about other people’s religious beliefs and practices. “While Williams self-identifies as pagan, it should be noted that he has no mandate to speak on behalf of all the witches in South Africa,” said SAPRA director, Damon Leff.”

The piece also interviews a representative of the Traditional Healers Organisation (THO) who sympathizes with SAPRA’s goals, and feels that while it might be possible for the term to be used and reclaimed among white South Africans,  colonialist framing of the term “witch” has made reclaimation all but impossible among black South Africans. What’s clear is that this issue isn’t going away any time soon, and it remains to be seen if some sort of “dual understanding” equilibrium over terminology can be reached.

The Lancaster Sunday News has the official follow-up from the showdown in Stoudtburg Village, which pitted a planned Pagan festival against Christian protesters and shop-owners closing to avoid serving Pagan customers.

“Witches and pagans who traveled to Adamstown on Saturday for a festival “Celebrating Earth Spirituality” were greeted by a steady rain and praying Christians in a silent protest. The gathering held at Stoudtburg Village and hosted by Reading Pagans & Witches proved to far less controversial than the debate that brewed in the days leading up to it … Jen Anderson-Wenger, president of Reading Pagans & Witches, said several church groups “laid hands on us and prayed.” She said she was pleased at the turnout, and said her group was received “very peacefully”.”

You can read Jen Anderson-Wenger’s report on the festival, here. The Reading Pagans & Witches site has also posted a list of businesses that stayed open for them. It should be interesting to see what the long-term ramifications of this event will be. Will some stores that closed down end up regretting it? Have local perceptions of who modern Pagans are changed any? It would nice to see some follow-up on those questions.

The Boston Globe’s Articles of Faith blog reports on the massive new Hindu Temple of Minnesota, and the various issues that the growing numbers of American Hindus (1.5 – 2 million estimated) face.

“This temple is unlike anything you would see in India — there, temples are typically centered on a single deity, but because this is the U.S., where the Hindu community hails from all over India as well as the Hindu diaspora, the temple opted for a variety of shrines to meet the needs and devotional practices of a diverse group of worshipers … The biggest challenge, of course, is transmitting the faith from immigrants, most of whom grew up in a predominantly Hindu society, to their children, who are growing up in a predominantly Christian society.”

Reporter Michael Paulson also notes that the Hindu community in America is used to worship being a personal matter, and is still adjusting to the American tradition of clergy speaking out publicly on social and political issues. In the coming years it should be interesting to see how Hindu clergy in America start to adapt to Western expectations of what religious leaders do, and what the leaders that do spring to the forefront want to say. I wanted to highlight this article because there are some strong similarities between the Hindu community’s emergence into the American mainstream and our own. We should pay attention to how they grow and change, because the modern Pagan movement will be facing similar issues as our numbers start to rival theirs.

Canadian magazine The Walrus takes a look at the Theosophist and Transcendentalist beliefs of the Group of Seven,  a fellowship of influential landscape painters in the 1920s who were influenced by European Impressionism.

“Cosmic consciousness might seem an awfully thin rod to hang a flag from, but given the checkered history of nationalist experiments in the twentieth century, that may have been a godsend. During the 1920s and ’30s, when Germans were falling for a myth of the mystical superiority of the Nordic race, Canadian Theosophists were promoting a quaint, aristocratic mysticism that privileged the wisdom of colonized peoples and taught the values of internationalism and universal brotherhood.”

It’s a fascinating exploration of how the Canadian art world became infatuated with Theosophy and how that relationship influenced the art that was made. “New Age”, occult, indigenous, and modern Pagan religions and philosophies have had such a great impact on the history of art that I’m surprised we haven’t seen more explorations of the topic. It’s certainly true that we still await a good overview of fine art and illustration influenced (and created) by modern Paganism, something that I hope I don’t have to wait too long to see remedied.

Three Roman-era statues of Aphrodite have been discovered at the Israeli archaeological site of Hippos, excavators speculate they were hidden by worshipers of the goddess during the rise of Christianity in the 4th century CE.

“It is possible that during the fourth century [CE], when Christianity was gradually becoming the governing religion in the Roman Empire, there were still a number of inhabitants in Sussita who remained loyal to the goddess of love and therefore wished to hide and preserve these items,” suggests Prof. Segal.

No word yet on what will be done with the statues, or if they’ll eventually be put on display. If I were a devotee of Aphrodite I might see the recovery of these intact statues as some sort of sign or miracle, proof of her enduring power. It is, after all, how many Christians see the recovery of their ancient artifacts.

In a final note, there’s a new Pagan e-zine starting up called “Eternal Haunted Summer”.

“Eternal Haunted Summer is the only ezine of its kind: one which gives voice to modern devotion to the many Gods and Goddesses of our ancestors. Poems and stories celebrating the Deities and heroes of the Celts, Norse, Germans, Romans, Etruscans, Greeks, Phoenicians, Canaanites, Sumerians, Egyptians and many, many, many others are all welcome. If you have been inspired to write a poem honoring Apollo or Brigid or Enki; or a short story about Inanna or El or Jove; or if you have written a review about a book or journal with a Pagan focus, please consider submitting it here. Our first official issue will go live on the Winter Solstice 2009, with quarterly updates on each subsequent Equinox and Solstice.”

I wish them every success and hope the poets and writers who read the The Wild Hunt will check them out.

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

The South African press is currently riveted with the story of Morne Harmse, a young man who seemingly experienced some sort of psychotic break, donned a Slipnot-esque mask, and went on a rampage with a ninja sword killing one teenager and wounding three others. Harmse, who plead guilty to the crimes, just underwent a sentencing trial where the court called expert witness Dr. Kobus Jonker.

“Sword killer Morne Harmse may not have been a practising satanist, but he was dabbling in the occult.  This was according to satanism expert Dr Kobus Jonker, who testified this morning in the pre-sentencing hearing of the teenager who went on the rampage with a ninja sword at his school last year, killing a fellow pupil.  He took the stand as the expert witness called by the court.  Jonker, a retired policeman, said he had established the police’s occult-related crimes unit after being told to look into the issue by former minister of law and order Adriaan Vlok.  Between 1981 and 2000, Jonker investigated hundreds of occult-related crimes and testified in 30 to 40 murder cases. This earned him several nicknames, including “Donker Jonker”, “The Hound of God” and “God’s Detective”. His unit was disbanded after human rights groups claimed that it was not constitutional in a country that guaranteed religious freedom.”

If that names seems familiar, it’s because Jonker was essentially the face of “Satanic Panic” in South Africa. Jonker and his now-disbanded “Occult Related Crimes Unit” essentially spread Christian propaganda regarding the “occult” and “Satanism” under the auspices of law enforcement. Jonker and his group  were also profiled by Kerr Cuhulain, who pointed out the many troubling aspects to the (mis)information this unit was spreading. So what did this “expert” have to say about Harmse? That he wasn’t a Satanic murderer because he didn’t fit his almost comical list of stereotypes.

“Dr Kobus Jonker, testified that although Harmse had been experimenting with Satanism and witchcraft, his involvement in such practices was superficial … Jonker said certain items and rituals typically present in a Satanic murder were absent in Harmse’s case … the bedding and curtains in Harmse’s bedroom were coloured, whereas a practising Satanist would have had only black or red. There were also no blood smears or animal parts found in his bedroom … candle wax found on the ouija board under his bed was white, pink and yellow, whereas a Satanist would have used only black and red candles … Jonker said that on the day of the murder, Harmse had not spoken in any demonic language…”

What demonic language exactly? Backwards Latin? What? That Jonker was allowed to peddle this nonsense at a high-profile murder trial mocks the entire proceeding. The family of the murdered boy and the family of Harmse have to sit and listen while this man prates on about black and red candles? He and the judge that allowed this should be ashamed. A judgement on sentencing is expected by September 10th, let’s hope that decision is aided by real expert/clinical analysis and not the imagination of a born-again Satan-hunter.

Just a few quick items to enrich your day. We start off with a Wall Street Journal editorial from Eric Rassbach at The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty on why he decided to defend Jose Merced’s right to sacrifice goats in his home.

“It is a small victory for religious freedom in this country, not just for Mr. Merced, but for everyone who believes the human conscience is a precious gift to be protected. Of course, Christians, Jews, Muslims, or others may want to convince Mr. Merced that his beliefs are in error, and the same religious liberty will protect their right to try to persuade him. That’s the point: Persuasion, not state coercion, is the way all of us should engage our fellow citizens as they seek to obey the “still small voice” of conscience. So ask not why I defend goat sacrifice. Ask me how you can too.”

You can read my full coverage of this case, here. As I’ve said before, this case could set a nationwide precedent allowing for legalized ritualized animal sacrifice in an large number of settings, including within some modern Pagan communities. Expect this issue to remain “hot” as litigation and local laws clash over what is allowed.

The Nigerian newspaper Next has an article about Americans training in Yoruba. Next also provides a gallery of images, and an interview with the keeper of Oshun’s sacred lantern. I would be interested to learn just how many American pilgrims are making the trek to Nigeria in order to be initiated into Yoruba, and to participate in the rites at the Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove. Is there a new resurgence of African American interest (and American interest in general) in Yoruba? If young Haitian-Americans are turning to Vodou, perhaps there is an even wider trend of traditional African religions being adopted here in the US?

In a final note, for those wanting to further explore the conflicts and issues brought up in yesterday’s post, you can read reactions from the  South African Pagan Council and the South African Pagan Rights Alliance concerning MP Adrian Williams’s stance on anti-witchcraft laws in the country.

“Mpumalanga ANC MP Adrian Williams has accused the South African Pagan Rights Alliance of being arrogant in pursuing the reclamation of the terms Witch and Witchcraft. SAPRA rejects the allegation of arrogance and notes that reclamation of loaded terminology has long been a recognized method of educating the broader public and fighting for the rights of unrecognized minorities. While Mr Williams self-identifies as Pagan, it should be noted that he has no mandate to speak on behalf of all the Witches or Witchcraft practitioners in South Africa, many of whom have already expressed a desire to reclaim the terminology.”

It certainly seems like Mr. Williams has few friends among South African Pagan organizations, is his view an isolated one? Or are there other Pagans who take the same stance on issues of identifying as a “Witch” in South Africa? As always, South African Pagans are welcome to comment here, though let’s keep things civil.

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

The Times in South Africa has a profile of African National Congress and South African Communist Party (in alliance with the ANC in the current government) member Adrian Williams, an MP from Mpumalanga who happens to be a Pagan.

“Meet Adrian Williams, the only pentacle-wearing witch in parliament. But the card-carrying ANC and South African Communist Party member, 43, from Mpumalanga has renounced the terms “witch” and “witchcraft” because he maintains the issue needs to be treated with sensitivity in South Africa. Williams practises “magick”, but calls himself a pagan or eclectic wiccan.”

The article brings up the complex issue of labels and identity in a country where “witchcraft” and “witches” are beings to feared, and if possible, hunted and killed. The Times piece seems to illuminate a split in opinion among South African Pagans and Witches, while some want to be accepted and named as Witches, and are fighting against anti-witchcraft laws for fear it will affect them as well, Williams (and I’m assuming others like him) takes a more pragmatic approach to the issue.

“I don’t call myself a witch. I distance myself from those terms because they are highly offensive to the vast majority of people in this country … Pagan rights groups have asked the South African Law Reform Commission to consider repealing the Witchcraft Suppression Act of 1957. It prohibits knowledge or the practice of witchcraft, criminalises the accusation of others as witches — as well as the practising of divination … But Williams said the rights groups were being “arrogant”. He said self-defined witches should be sensitive to the majority of South Africans and their beliefs. “Go to Limpopo and declare that you’re a witch and see how long you survive,” he said.  Asked to comment on the Witchcraft Suppression Act, he said: “It does not undermine any right except the right to define yourself.” “I just think it’s very arrogant of white pagans in South Africa to push for rights they know will be detrimental to the majority. It would be ideal if we could change the perception of what witchcraft is.”

Williams seems to be a proponent of a slow and gradual “liberation” of the terminology by Pagans, and is against Pagans in South Africa making what he sees as culturally insensitive (and dangerous) demands. It seems that issues like these will only become more pronounced as Wicca and other forms of modern Paganism increasingly become “world” religions. It does seem a shame that some sort of middle ground can’t be found between an out Pagan MP in South Africa and the South African Pagan Rights Alliance. It would be interesting to have some input on these issues from any of my South African Pagan readers.

A somewhat slow news day today, but there were a few things of interest. Starting off with an update on a story I mentioned in last week’s News of Note. It seems that the South African Air Force and Pagan chaplain Donna “Darkwolf” Vos have reached a settlement concerning her dismissal from a position she was initially hired for until they found out she was a Witch.

“She applied for the position at Ysterplaat Air Force base in 2003. Vos claimed the colonel who interviewed her called Paganism a cult and said he could not “unleash” Vos on people. The two parties appeared in the Equality Court on Friday, where a settlement was reached, according to Vos. “We are very happy with the outcome, and their attitude to everything was very amenable,” she said of the Air Force, which has conceded to consultation and negotiation around paganism. “There is scope to work together.” She said she would not pursue the case any further.”

While this settlement means the legal case has been postponed indefinitely, Vos retains the right to take it up again should the SAAF renege on their agreement concerning “consultation and negotiation around paganism”. It should be interesting to see exactly what shape that consultation will take.

Turning from the courtroom to network television, word has come out that ABC has ordered a pilot based on Bill Willingham’s award-winning comic series “Fables”.

“ABC has commited to a pilot for a series based on the comic, written by Six Degress Stu Zicherman and Raven Metzner and directed by David Semel. The pilot will be produced by Warner Bros. TV and will take the form of an hour-long drama.”

“Fables” concerns the lives of famous storybook characters (the Big Bad Wolf, Snow White, Little Boy Blue) living in America, exiled from their fictional homelands by “The Adversary”. One can only hope they do the comic justice, as the stories are filled with magic, intrigue, romance, and the occasional mythological figure.

In a final note, did you know that Ludwig van Beethoven was a tool of the conspiracy?

“In 1779, a composer, writer, teacher, and dreamer named Christian Neefe arrived in Bonn, Germany, to work for the Electoral Court … Before long in his new post, Neefe found himself mentoring a genius. Meanwhile, in his spare time, he signed on with a plan to, as it were, rule the world.”

Yes, that’s right, Beethoven’s tutor was a member of The Bavarian Illuminati. Jan Swafford claims that nothing much came of this other than the famous composer taking up Schiller’s Ode to Joy for the Ninth Symphony, but is exactly what they want you to think!