TALLAHASSEE, Fla.- Two bills currently before the Florida State Legislature, Senate Bill 1044 and its companion House Bill 931, propose granting permission for chaplains to volunteer in Florida schools. These bills aim to authorize public schools to enlist volunteer chaplains to offer student counseling services.
Fl. Sen. Gayle Harrell explained, “We are empowering the school districts to make decisions that are in the best interest of their children, in their communities, and setting the requirements that they feel would be necessary to protect their children and make sure that any type of counseling is legitimate counseling.”
Neither bill contains constraints about which groups can offer counseling.
It’s important to underscore that the U.S. Constitution bars states from dictating which religious groups are eligible to volunteer. This constitutional constraint will likely allow clergy from other groups, including Pagan organizations to provide services to students.
Lucien Greaves, a spokesperson for the Satanic Temple which champions the continuing separation of church and state said, “They don’t need to use the schools yet again as another culture war battleground, but if they are going to open up schools to chaplains, they have to be neutral about which religious points of view are available to children as chaplains.” He noted that the bills were simply another mechanism to intrude religions favored by the state into the schools.
Greaves emphasized, “Religious liberty really means that the government needs to remain neutral when it comes to which religions they allow and which religions they don’t. They can allow religion in places, but they can’t distinguish between religions.”
Greaves said he will see the State of Florida in court noting the bills are also a waste of public funds. “They should also not want to waste public funds on a lawsuit that’s certainly going to lose because of some superfluous effort to put chaplains in schools on a false rationale.”
The bills are currently progressing through the legislative process in Florida. If approved, they are scheduled to take effect on July 1.
FAIRFIELD, Conn.- In a bizarre story from February brought to our attention by our readers, the Fairfield Connecticut police department advised the public in the area about a “Santeria-type ritual” using animal organs.
Formally known as La Regla de Ocha or Ifá, Santería is a syncretic African Traditional Religion combining elements of Catholicism and Yoruba religion. It emerged in Cuba and similar syncretic forms have developed throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. The religion involves developing relationships with Orisha for guidance, healing, and spiritual empowerment.
La Regla de Ocha does occasionally perform animal offerings. However responsible practitioners do not use public settings. Animal offerings were also the central component of the landmark US Supreme Court case Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye, Inc. v. City of Hialeah (1993). In that case, The Free Exercise Clause protects animal offerings that are performed as a religious ritual unless the government can show a compelling countervailing interest.
Then Justice Anthony Kenedy wrote ” “religious beliefs need not be acceptable, logical, consistent or comprehensible to others in order to merit First Amendment protection” adding, “We conclude, in sum, that each of Hialeah’s ordinances pursues the city’s governmental interests only against conduct motivated by religious belief. The ordinances “ha[ve] every appearance of a prohibition that society is prepared to impose upon [Santeria worshippers] but not upon itself.”
As for the story, police were called to Gould Manor Park on Holland Hill Road on February 8, 2024, following a report of items being discovered at the park resembling animal organs. The incident has garnered increased public attention due to the dissemination of images and information on social media.
“While we understand the concerns and curiosity surrounding these findings, we want to emphasize that there is no identified threat to public safety,” Fairfield Police Department said in a statement acknowledging the heightened interest in the investigation and emphasizing that, as of now, there is no identified threat to public safety.
The responsible party behind placing the suspected organs at the park remains unknown at this time. Police are encouraging residents to report any suspicious incidents directly to them and advising caution in sharing sensitive or provocative information on social media.
“This collaborative effort ensures the accuracy of information, minimizes unnecessary panic, and facilitates a thorough investigation,” stated the police.
No further updates have been made available.
International Women’s Day (IWD) is a global observance held annually on March 8 to celebrate the achievements and contributions of women throughout history.
It is also a day to raise awareness about gender equality and advocate for women’s rights. The day is marked by various events, activities, and initiatives worldwide, including rallies, discussions, performances, and campaigns.
International Women’s Day emerged from the labor movement in the early 20th century and was first celebrated by the socialist movement in the United States and Europe. The day has since evolved into a broader celebration of women’s accomplishments and a platform for addressing issues such as gender discrimination, violence against women, and unequal access to education and employment.
International Women’s Day 2024 campaign theme is ‘Inspire Inclusion.’ They wrote “With well over a century of history and change, the first International Women’s Day (IWD) was held in March 1911. IWD isn’t country, group or organization specific. It’s a day of collective global activism and celebration that belongs to all those committed to forging women’s equality. ”
The Wild Hunt will be covering IWD from a Pagan focus in tomorrow’s special report.
#InternationalWomensDay is tomorrow #March8 & the world🌍 steps forward to celebrate #women‘s achievements, while calling for a #genderequal future. Are you ready to pledge to #InspireInclusion & do all you can to help advance women on #IWD2024 & beyond? 👉https://t.co/CE787vsOiR pic.twitter.com/93pL8aDodB
— Women’s Day (@womensday) March 7, 2024
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Announcements
COLUMBIA, SC — Today Cherry Hill Seminary announced the launch of a spring annual appeal fundraising campaign, “A Universe of Possibilities.” With a goal of $20,000 in both gifts and pledges, more than $11,000 has already been committed.
“Something that fascinates me about Cherry Hill Seminary is the multitude of people, groups and cities being changed for the better by our students,” said Executive Director Holli Emore. “Just a handful of examples are: serving a UU congregation as minister; running CUUPs groups; being hospital and hospice chaplains; offering spiritual direction services to clients; organizing a new tax-exempt Pagan congregation; leading a landed Heathen hof; teaching the arts for Pagans; active duty military service; running LGBTQ support groups; advising prison chaplains and management; and so many more things.
“How could we even begin to count how many lives Cherry Hill Seminary may be touching through our students?” Emore continued. “Then there is simply the enrichment experienced by so many who take a course out of curiosity and learn that there is a whole world of Pagan religious studies out there.”
A Universe of Possibilities appeal will run through April, or until goal is reached. Those wishing to contribute may visit this link
Cherry Hill Seminary serves Pagan and Nature-based communities by providing transformative education and empowering students to advance academically and lead spiritually, envisioning a world where people of Pagan and Nature-based spiritualities can receive competent and compassionate spiritual support.
Upcoming Events
Ár nDraíocht Féin’s Chokecherry Grove (Denver, CO) will be holding a one-day virtual event on Methods of Divination on Saturday, March 16th, 2024.
Our planned speakers are as follows:
- ADF’S ARCHDRUID REV. JEAN “DRUM” PAGANO will talk about his new MOON ORACLE.
- G. R. GROVE will speak on the OGAM.
- JAMES “PIGEON” FIELDER will discuss GAMING DIVINATION.
- LISA LANYON will speak on the TAROT.
- The day will conclude with a PANEL DISCUSSION on IMPROMPTU DIVINATION: WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU FORGOT YOUR TOOLS?
Each speaker will speak for an hour, followed by half an hour for questions. There will be two sessions in the morning, starting at 9:00 am MDT and 3:00 pm MDT. The sessions will be recorded, and copies shared with everyone who signs up. Note that this is a series of technical workshops and there will be no opportunity for personal readings.
The panel discussion will be followed by an ADF Core Order Ritual celebrating the first quarter moon and the Spring Equinox. To get an idea of what this will involve, see our ebook “Prayers and Invocations for Chokecherry Grove, ADF”. Everyone who signs up for the workshop will get a coupon code for a free copy.
Information is available on Chokecherry Grove’s site. They noted that the price for the whole day’s series of Zoom links is $10, and the payment link is on the sidebar to your right. (They also added that if the link is viewed on a phone, they advised to scroll down to the bottom to choose “view web version” to see the links.)
Ivo Dominguez Jr. announced a 3-day summit called Shield and Spell: A Gathering for Witches, Healers, and Empaths. The summit will cover spiritual protection and defensive magic from April 2nd to 4th, 2024. They write “Shield & Spell Summit is here to guide you through these challenges and answer your questions with wisdom from seasoned practitioners. Join us to deepen your knowledge in auric protection and defensive magic.”
The event includes Chaos Magic by Azariel Flame, Crystal Magic with Nicholas Pearson, Anti-Vampire Wards with Alexa Branco, Auric Clearing workshop series with Wendy Mata, and a Zoom Q&A panel with Sen Elias from New Orleans City Crescent Conjure, Ivo Domingues the author of The Four Elements Of The Wise, Nicholas Pearson the Author of The Seven Archeotype Stones, and Aunt Carla the founder of The Red Soul Flower.
Details are available on the Shield and Spell Summit website.
Circle Sanctuary’s Pagan Spirit Gathering (PSG) is one of America’s oldest and largest Nature Spirituality festivals. Since 1980, PSG has been bringing together Pagans of many paths and places to create community, celebrate the summer solstice, and commune with nature in a sacred environment.
Registration is now open for the 2024 Pagan Spirit Gathering, a national weeklong celebration of Summer Solstice, being held June 16-23 in south central Missouri, USA. This year’s theme is Resonating Radiance.
Pagan Spirit Gathering, also known as PSG, brings together Pagans of many paths and places to create and live in a magickal village community. The Gathering includes rituals, workshops, concerts, merchanting, bonfires, drumming, candlelight labyrinth, Pagan Leadership Institute, life passages programs, and other activities. Learn more & register
The Mystic South Conference announced that the sixth annual event will take place July 26-28, 2024! Mystic South is filled with workshops, educational abstract presentations, rituals, community building, and much more. With the backdrop of the grand city of Atlanta, be a part of our celebration of the diversity of the peoples and religious practices, both past and present, that make up the Southern US region.
The conference also announced that their Early Bird tickets are on sale. Tickets are $135 until February 29, 2024 (Yup, it’s a leap year!) get them now and, get some for your friends, your neighbors, or just some random person you met on the street! The clock is ticking, lock in savings today!
Tarot of the Week by Star Bustamonte
Deck: Our Tarot, by Sarah Shipman, published by Harper Design, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers.
Card: Two (2) of Swords – Helen Keller
The next seven days hold the potential to highlight areas that may require making difficult decisions–particularly those concerning aspects that have generated frustration and stymied forward momentum. While there may not be a clear and easy choice, it is important to make sure all angles of an issue have been researched and the issue at hand is fully understood.
Conversely, attempting to not make a choice or render a decision is likely to backfire and result in choices being made by others that do not reflect the originally desired outcome or even result in a complete stalemate. Feelings of isolation, loneliness, and uncertainty can be countered by listening to and trusting one’s intuition.
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