Paganism

Uncovering the Past: Feasting Halls, Viking Warriors, and Fake News

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As some Pagans and Heathens 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. Did the Ark of the Covenant contain Pagan gods? Archaeologists have long looked for the Ark of the Covenant, a large case the Bible says contains the broken pieces of the Ten Commandments.

News

Weekend protests by Christian groups unite local Pagan communities

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UNITED STATES — Christian protesters targeted a Pagan Pride Day in Philadelphia and a Pagan shop in Greenville, North Carolina in two completely unrelated events Saturday. While the reaction by the Pagans present at both locations differed, they all agree that those protests have since united their respective communities. Philadelphia Pagan Pride Day

Last Saturday afternoon, Robert Schreiwer, coordinator and president of Philadelphia Pagan Pride Day, was doing some shopping at one of the vendor stalls near the entrance of the park where the event was being held. That’s when he heard a commotion nearby. Mr. Schreiwer says it was a group trying to enter the park while one man “began to spew an invective full of hate” over a megaphone.

News

Louisville Pagan Pride addresses the need for accessibility accommodations

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A Pagan woman who is deaf alleges that Louisville Pagan Pride refused to provide her with a sign language interpreter for its upcoming Pagan Pride Day event. Event organizers say budget constraint was to blame for their initial refusal, but they are now making arrangements to accommodate Virginia Beach when she presents her workshop next Saturday. In early August, Beach contacted Louisville Pagan Pride (LPP) to ask if she could present a workshop on being Pagan and deaf. LPP accepted her workshop proposal.

Living

Pagans find camaraderie at New Hampshire’s TempleFest 2017

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HANCOCK, N.H. – TempleFest 2017, the annual summer festival of the Temple of Witchcraft, was held last weekend. Attendees and presenters traveled from all over the country to partake in workshops, panels, and rituals. Did these witches find what they were looking for? Folklorist and anthropologist Dr. Sabina Magliocco says Pagans attend festivals for a range of reasons, “Everything from seeking to immerse themselves completely in Pagan culture, to reconnecting with old friends, experiencing nature in the company of other Pagans, and participating in large group ritual. Some go just to party with friends.”

News

Charlottesville: events, reactions, and aftermath

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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Vir. – It began with online organizing among nationalist groups to protest the removal of a Confederate statue from a local park. It ended with street battles, three people dead, and an unknown number injured. While most Pagans watched the events on the news or through live streams, there were Pagans and Heathens present at the weekend riots.They were protesters who lined the streets around the park, and they also participated in the Unite the Right rally as members of the self-described “alt-right.” And one well-known Pagan even helped organize the rally and was scheduled to speak.