News

Pagans launch hex action in conjunction with sexual assault case

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PALO ALTO, Calif. — A six-month jail sentence for a former Stanford University swimmer convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman has sparked widespread outrage. Critics are saying his sentence, which deviated from sentencing guidelines of two to fourteen years, is far too lenient. While that sentence has generated protests, recall efforts, and conversations about bias in the legal system, it has generated something else within the Pagan community – a call to hex the perpetrator, his father, and the judge who granted the sentence. Brock Allen Turner, 20, was convicted of three counts of felony sexual assault including sexually penetrating an unconscious person with a foreign object.

Paganism

Uncovering the Past: Cave Rings, Phoenician DNA, Egyptian Spellcraft and more!

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As some Pagans attempt to revive ancient or indigenous religions they often rely on the work of historians, primary texts and archaeologists. For this reason, when something new pops up that challenges long held academic ideas on cultural or religious practice, we pay attention. Here are some of the new(er) finds making waves in archaeological circles. Cave rings in Southern France Hint at Neanderthal religious rites

Archaeologists have reported on an “extraordinary discovery” in France after finding several man-made circular structures, or rings, that date back 170,000 years to the time Neanderthals lived in the area. The rings were constructed out of stalagmites from the Bruniquel Cave in France’s southern region, and excavators believe that they might have been used for some sort of ritual at the time of their creation.

News

The “Dark Side” does have cookies

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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — A famous internet meme tells people to come to the Dark Side because there are cookies. The Satanic Temple of Minneapolis (TST) turned that statement into reality when it hosted its 2nd Annual Bake Sale last Saturday. The bake sale is a fundraiser for the temple, and all money raised went to “combat fundamentalist legislation by supporting reproductive rights campaigns and [its] LGBT friends and family in [the] battle for separation of church and state.”

The event was held at Magus Books & Herbs, a metaphysical shop popular with local Pagans. Within 30 minutes of the start of the bake sale the line for vagina cupcakes and biracial brownies was all the way through the store.

Canada

Canadian fire spares polytheist’s altar and shrine

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SAINT ALBERT, Alberta – When a fire nearly engulfed a Canadian polytheist’s cabin, not only was the structure spared, but so was an altar and shrine to his ancestors and Brighid, both of which were, and still are, tucked in the woods. Mhaoillain and his wife were enjoying a lazy Sunday afternoon on the deck of their cabin, located in the woods near Saint Albert when they heard a voice call out for help with a fire. “At first, I thought it was some stupid joke, as the whole of Alberta has been under a strict fire ban for weeks, and considering the recent devastation in Fort MacMurray, in northern Alberta, why would anyone purposefully start a fire?” said Mhaoillain in an interview with The Wild Hunt. Then he heard the voice call out again saying that there was a fire. Mhaoillain said that he ran through the wooded area to the end of his property and was met with a growing brush fire.

Canada

Former Heathen candidate Robert Rudachyk attends meetup with Canada’s Prime Minister

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SASKATCHEWAN – On April 27, Robert Rudachyk had an opportunity few in Canada have enjoyed; to attend a meetup with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Even more remarkable about the invitation is that, in a time when many politicians run from associating with those in minority religions, attendees were unconcerned about Rudachyk’s Heathen religion. In an interview with The Wild Hunt, he said that it is a non-issue. 

The meet-and-greet was held at the Sheraton Cavalier Saskatoon Hotel to thank the Saskatchewan-based Liberal Party volunteers, who had worked on the federal election in October. The event was limited to 450 guests, all members of Trudeau’s Liberal Party. The Liberal Party is considered a centrist party in Canada, while the Saskatchewan Party is the provincial level right wing party and the New Democratic Party is to the left.