New Moon Eclectics – logo
In fall 2025, a Wiccan covenstead in Washington, Georgia, became the center of local controversy after a Christian pastor publicly denounced the group and county officials initiated zoning enforcement actions. The property, known as New Moon Eclectics, was purchased in December 2024 by High Priestess Rhonda Field and is used by members of the coven as both a spiritual gathering space and a small metaphysical shop.
Tensions escalated after a Facebook post warned residents that a “witch coven” had moved into the area and urged the community to oppose what it described as a “demonic intrusion.” The post fueled public concern and led to a prayer rally targeting the covenstead. In response, leaders of New Moon Eclectics emphasized their intention to foster spiritual community and dialogue, noting plans for an interfaith pilgrimage across the United States to promote understanding of Pagan traditions.
The controversy intensified during a November 13 meeting of the Wilkes County Board of Commissioners, where Pastor Brenda Lunsford-Vandiver claimed that the presence of the covenstead would promote “witchcraft, spiritualism, and black magic,” suggesting it could endanger the community. County officials clarified that religious beliefs were not under consideration, but they cited zoning violations, including residential use and septic issues, on the property, which is designated for industrial use.
Leaders of New Moon Eclectics rejected the allegations and emphasized that Wicca is a legally recognized religion in the United States. They referenced federal court decisions affirming constitutional protections for minority faiths and stressed that their practice centers on nature reverence, spiritual exploration, and community building.
This week, the dispute reached a new development. Harold Sanford Carter III, a priest of New Moon Eclectics and founder of Witchcraft TV, announced that the group prevailed in court regarding the code violation case that followed the controversy. According to Carter, the case stemmed from complaints that arose after local pastor Brenda Lunsford-Vandiver of Bethel Church publicly opposed the covenstead and urged county officials to take action. Carter said he appeared in court without legal counsel, facing the prosecuting attorney, sheriff’s deputies, and a code enforcement officer. The court ultimately ruled in his favor, ending the code enforcement action that county officials had previously suggested could prevent the group from operating at the location under zoning rules.
In a statement following the ruling, Carter framed the outcome as a moment of affirmation for religious freedom and minority faiths. “This moment isn’t about anger or revenge,” he wrote. “It’s about standing firm in who we are and refusing to be pushed aside simply because our beliefs are different.” Carter also reflected on the broader significance of the case for those who feel marginalized for their spiritual paths, concluding, “When one door closes, we rise—carrying the fire with us. Sometimes the Phoenix really does rise.”
Congratulations ot New Moon Eclectics!
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Five Victims Killed in Home with “Witchcraft” Connection
SEATTLE — Authorities in Pierce County, Washington, are investigating a mass stabbing near Gig Harbor that left five people dead, including the suspect, in an incident that has drawn additional attention because earlier court filings referenced alleged “occult rituals” and “witchcraft” occurring at the residence.
According to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded on Tuesday morning to reports that a man might be violating a protection order at a home on the Key Peninsula, roughly 15 miles northwest of Tacoma. While a deputy was en route to serve the order, emergency calls began reporting that a man was stabbing people outside the residence.
A lone deputy arrived shortly after 9:30 a.m. and encountered the suspect actively attacking a victim. The deputy fired his weapon, killing the man. Authorities reported that four adults had already died from stab wounds before officers arrived, and a fifth victim who was transported to a nearby hospital later succumbed to injuries. No deputies were injured. The Pierce County Force Investigation Team has taken over the case.
Officials have not yet publicly identified the victims or clarified the relationships among those involved. Preliminary reports indicate all victims were adults. Local media reports suggest the property was home to a 52-year-old woman and her adult son.
Court documents from 2025 indicate that the woman had previously sought protection from her son, citing a series of troubling behaviors. In an April 2025 petition, she alleged that he was conducting “witchcraft/occult behavior” and “rituals” inside the home and damaging personal belongings. The filing also described erratic behavior, including an incident in which the smoke detector was triggered by activity in the garage that produced a strong odor.
The petition further alleged that the man claimed to be an “Egyptian god,” harmed a family pet, and threatened his mother. A court commissioner issued a one-year protection order in May 2025 requiring him to leave the residence, avoid contact with his mother, and follow a mental-health treatment plan. He was also barred from possessing weapons.
At this stage, investigators have not indicated that any religious practice or belief system played a role in the violence. The references to “occult rituals” appear only in earlier protection-order filings describing the suspect’s behavior, which court records also characterized as linked to mental-health concerns.
The investigation remains ongoing, and The Wild Hunt will continue to monitor the story.
2026 Virtual Symposium of Pagan Thought and Practice
The Commons of Modern Pagans and Spiritual Seekers (COMPASS) is pleased to share an exciting opportunity with the broader Pagan community: the 2026 Virtual Symposium of Pagan Thought & Practice, taking place July 26, 2026, via Zoom.
This year’s theme, “The Notion of Balance,” invites scholars, practitioners, and creatives to explore how balance is understood, experienced, and expressed within Pagan traditions, practices, and philosophies. The symposium is designed as a space for vibrant discussion, thoughtful exchange, and meaningful community connection.
COMPASS encourages community members to share this announcement widely and to consider participating in what promises to be an engaging and intellectually rich gathering.
Key details follow below.
About the Symposium
The Virtual Symposium of Pagan Thought and Practice focuses on the intersection of ideas, beliefs, and practices within Contemporary Pagan spiritualities. This year’s theme, “The Notion of Balance,” offers a broad and inclusive platform for exploration.
Potential topics include:
- Balance in ritual practices, magical workings, and relationships.
- Dualities: light/dark, chaos/order, life/death.
- Ecological balance and Pagan responses to environmental crises.
- Gender identity and evolving notions of polarity.
- Balancing ancient traditions with contemporary innovations.
Call for Papers
We invite members of your community to submit abstracts and participate in this exciting event. Presentations, panels, creative workshops, and personal reflections are all welcome!
- Abstracts: 300 words.
- Bio: 100 words.
- Deadline: June 30, 2026.
- Email: compasspagansandseekers@gmail.com (Subject: “Submission: Pagan Balance CFP”).
More details can be found at: https://www.pagancommons.org/symposium.
Crossings of the Veil
Kat Suthon, Aunt Kitty, Ol’ Puss o’ the North, Kat Whiskers. On October 21, 2025, our Kat left her mortal body in the care of her loving and beloved chosen and blood families and joined the stars.
Born Katherine Hullin Suthon on November 11, 1938, in New Orleans, Louisiana, the ninth of ten children to Bessie Imogen Keen Suthon and Archibald Magill Suthon, Kat lived her nearly 87-year life as a heretical witch, a butch dyke, a spirited storyteller, and a ‘good trouble’ rabble rouser. She was an early member of the Reclaiming Collective, an earth-honoring and activist spiritual community in the Pagan and Goddess traditions in the San Francisco Bay Area. Since its founding in 1979, Reclaiming has evolved into a tradition of the Craft that now includes communities across the US and on four continents. She uniquely embodied the passionate, the poetic, and the revolutionary amongst her ancestors, thus carrying a blessing and responsibility in her own generation that brought her great joy and freedom as well as great challenges. We will not see her like again.
Kat was as extraordinarily loving as she was complex and cantankerous. To have known her as friend or family was a rare and cherished gift.
Kat leaves us with the legacy and inspiration of her chosen spiritual practices and community, the sacred spaces she helped to create, her lifelong activism on behalf of social justice, feminist and LGBTQ+ rights, climate justice, and spiritual freedom. She will be remembered for her beautiful poetry and the stories she told in her signature New Orleans drawl, her raucous laughter, her unbounded love of cats, and above all, her tenacious insistence on living life and dying on her own terms.
Her family and close friends laid her to rest in the Marin County land that she so loved (with four cherished felines’ remains) on October 31, 2025, enrobed in a thousand flowers. They watered the earth above her with their tears, songs, laughter, and love. How she would have cackled, knowing she was buried on Halloween/Samhain in such a joyfully loving and beautiful ceremony!!
Remember her whenever you see a cat, read a poem, hike the hills, or dedicate yourself to living with vivacity, authenticity, and fierce integrity.
What is remembered lives.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
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The Earth-Based Spirituality Action Team Announced a New Meeting!
Events and Announcements
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Tarot of the Week by Star Bustamonte
Deck: Otherkin Tarot, by Siolo Thompson, published by Llewellyn Publications.
Card: Major Arcana, The Moon
The incoming week has the potential to generate feelings of uncertainty, with fears and insecurities amplified. If things feel unclear and the ability to envision a path forward seems evasive, some soul searching may be the best way to move forward. Asking important questions of exactly what is desired and why could help to harden the resolve to find a new path forward. It’s significant to note that some of the greatest breakthroughs in history came sharply on the heels of the darkest moments.
Contrarily, a miasma of confusion, deception, and turmoil could be a reflection of avoidance when it comes to addressing emotional and/or psychological issues. The only way to resolve most inner conflicts and move past them is to embrace the moment and confront those issues with honesty. Taking a break, stepping back from commitments, and even asking for help to gain a better perspective may be in order.
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As always, our deepest gratitude to everyone who has brought us this far.
And Finally….
Super Cute Marsupials
Scientists have rediscovered two remarkably charming marsupial species on the island of New Guinea that researchers once believed had gone extinct roughly 6,000 years ago. The discovery, documented in two studies published March 6 in Records of the Australian Museum, has delighted conservation scientists, who describe the animals as rare “Lazarus species,” organisms that reappear after disappearing from the fossil record for thousands of years.
The rediscovered animals are the pygmy long-fingered possum (Dactylonax kambuayai) and the ring-tailed glider (Tous ayamaruensis). Until recently, scientists knew these species only from ancient fossils, which suggested they had vanished long ago. Their reappearance was confirmed through fieldwork on the Bird’s Head Peninsula—also known as the Vogelkop Peninsula—in northwestern New Guinea, a region celebrated for its lush rainforests and extraordinary biodiversity.
Image Credit: Carlos Bocos via https://journals.australian.museum/media/dd/documents/3003_complete.5a0289d.pdf
The discovery was made possible through collaboration between scientists and local Indigenous communities, particularly the Tambrauw and Maybrat peoples. Their deep knowledge of the forest landscape helped researchers locate and document the animals, highlighting the importance of Indigenous ecological knowledge in modern conservation efforts.
Both species have distinctive and undeniably adorable traits. The pygmy long-fingered possum is a small striped marsupial with a strikingly elongated finger on each hand. Scientists believe it uses its sharp hearing to detect insect larvae hidden in rotting wood, then delicately pries open the wood to extract its meal.
Image Credit: Arman Muharmansyah in Flannery et al. (2026) – “A new genus of hemibelideine possum (Marsupialia: Pseudocheiridae) from New Guinea and Australia, including a Lazarus taxon from the Vogelkop Peninsula”
The ring-tailed glider is a nocturnal tree-dweller that glides through the forest canopy and feeds on tree sap, leaves, fruit, and insects. Researchers determined that it belongs to an entirely new genus, Tous, named after the word used by local Indigenous communities for the animal, making it a unique branch of the possum family that may stretch back millions of years.
For some Indigenous groups, the glider also carries spiritual meaning and is regarded as a manifestation of ancestral spirits.
While scientists note that deforestation and logging remain potential threats, the rediscovery offers a hopeful reminder that remote forests still hold remarkable secrets. Researchers are now working carefully to study and protect these newly rediscovered species while safeguarding the forests they call home.
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