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.

Culture

EarthSpirit’s A Feast of Lights aims to drive the winter away

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NORTHAMPTON, MASSACHUSETTS –For Pagans who love to spend time celebrating the wonders of nature under sunny skies or dance the night away around a bonfire, New England in February can be disheartening to say the least. That’s where A Feast of Lights comes in. The midwinter festival, hosted by the EarthSpirit Community, is designed to be a “weekend of warmth at the coldest time of the year – a festival of community and hope, of tradition and creativity, of Earth spirituality and the arts, of community and hope, of tradition and creativity.” That promise was fulfilled, and then some. Warmth
While the temperatures outside hovered well below freezing, the hotel was comfortable.

Paganism

Column: Coph Nia,Weaving the Threads of Brotherhood

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[The following is a guest post from Erick DuPree. Erick DuPree is author of the popular blog Alone In Her Presence, and the book Alone In Her Presence: Meditations on the Goddess, as well as co-founder of Dharma Pagan, an online resource for dharma practitioners. He lives in Philadelphia, PA.]
They came by the blazing fire, circling and singing, invoking the Goddesses and Gods of old. There was dancing, merriment, deep reflection; even a few tears, all from the men of Coph Nia. Coph Nia is a mystical gathering of gay and bisexual men organized and sponsored by the Ordo Aeternus Vovin, a Thelemic, ceremonial magickal order for gay and bisexual men that was held August 6-10.