News

Max G. Beauvoir, the voice and the face of Haitian Vodou

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PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – The story of how Max G. Beauvoir came to practice the religion of his ancestors has been repeated widely since the report of his death earlier this week. Having returned to his native Haiti to apply his skills as a biochemist and to learn about the healing herbs used in that country, Beauvoir was called out by his dying grandfather as the one who would carry on the family tradition as a houngan. While Beauvoir was reportedly confused by the pronouncement, he took the directive quite seriously, using his polished manner to become an ambassador of Vodou to people both inside Haiti’s borders and beyond. Haitian Vodou initiate and blogger Lilith Dorsey never met Beauvoir, but was quite familiar with his work. The fact that he wasn’t particularly interested in the religion growing up didn’t come as a surprise to her.

Paganism

In Search Of Pagan Pride

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UNITED STATES –To acknowledge the many Pagan Pride Day events that take place at this time of the year, The Wild Hunt endeavored to learn more about the staying power of this movement by answering the question: what’s the longest-running pride event out there, and to what can it owe its success? The answer is somewhat obscured by the autonomy which touches every corner of Pagandom; even though there is a Pagan Pride Project  (PPP) dedicated to supporting these events, it is by no means the official arbiter and archivist of all things prideful. Indeed, the term is not copyrighted out of a sense that no one owns it. However, because of the support structure it provides, PPP has a decent institutional memory. We tapped into that memory through National President Brian Ewing, who has been promoting pride since before the turn of the century.

News

Religious Accommodations for Beards in Prison

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KULPMONT, Penn — An on-again, off-again inmate in Pennsylvania’s correctional system has filed a federal lawsuit alleging his religious beliefs were violated when he was required to shave his beard. Randy Elliot, Jr., said in court papers that the incident occurred June 13 of this year, a month and a half before he was released. He was given a choice between shaving his beard, which, according to the filed papers, is “against the Viking way” or being placed on restrictive housing status. Elliot, who is seeking an injunction against such actions and monetary damages, has since been returned to prison due to parole violations. Beards as a religious issue are nothing new in the United States, in or out of the prison system.

Living

Harvest Gathering offers New England bounty

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ORANGE, Conn. — Harvest Gathering is not the only Pagan festival to welcome participants home upon arrival, but its staff put a lot of energy into the idea. The theme came up again and again over the course of the four-day event, and it was evident in the increasing spring in the step of many an attendee. How many harvest events open the first feast to all comers, whether or not they paid for the meal plan? This one does, and it not only helped this first-timer feel welcome, it set the tone of “harvest event” from the outset. Perhaps Harvest Gathering had exactly the right number of people in attendance, at 163, which is right around Dunbar’s number.

Hellenic polytheism

Hellenics get a new advanced how-to book

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EUGENE, Or. — Last week, Sara Kate Istra Winter, also known as blogger Dver at A Forest Door, announced the release of her new book, Komos: Celebrating Festivals in Contemporary Hellenic Polytheism. It’s intended to be a “201-level” book for Hellenic polytheists who wish to explore the religion beyond household practice. As she was gearing up for publication, Winter was kind enough to answer some questions about her background and the book, giving a sense both of what Komos offers to worshipers of the Hellenic gods, and what it does not. The Wild Hunt: For those who are unfamiliar, can you share a little bit about your religious practices and/or beliefs? Sara Kate Istra Winter: I usually describe myself as being on the “outskirts” of Hellenic polytheism, simply because while I have a strong foundation in that religion, I am foremost a mystic and spiritworker and I let my experiences with the gods and spirits guide me to whatever will feed my practice best.