The Wild Hunt (https://wildhunt.org/tag/halloween/page/6)
A revived petition to change the date of Halloween gains support, but a number of Pagans are suspicious of another seemingly corporate attempt to drive up profits. A counter petition has also emerged.
We have entered the time of the year when many modern Pagans celebrate Samhain. The holiday marks the start of winter and the new year according to the old Celtic calendar. It is a time to reflect on transitions when the ancestors are honored, divination is performed, and festivals are held in honor of the gods. Samhain is also recognized as the final harvest before the long winter ahead. It is perhaps the best-known and most widely celebrated of all the modern Pagan holidays.
ATHENS, Tenn. – The Wayist Druid public Samhain ritual was successful despite threats of mass protest and violence. Due to threats the week before, the city posted warning notices to citizens that stated that it was illegal to disturb or interfere with any person or event that had been giving a permit. According to ritual host Archdruid Angela Wilson, Saturday’s event attracted more than 250 people. She said, “I want to personally thank everyone for coming yesterday it was a beautiful thing.”
UNITED KINGDOM — It’s once more coming up to Samhain, and there are a series of seasonal celebrations happening across the UK as Pagans anticipate the period of Samhain itself and others remain content with the pumpkins and trick or treating of Hallowe’en. It’s become fashionable in recent years for the British to complain about the customs we associate with Hallowe’en as being ‘American,’ but this is not exactly correct. A number of the practices that are followed at this time of year originated in the British Isles, and were taken to North America by British and Irish immigrants. ‘Guising’ – the practice of visiting your neighbours and asking for treats – was commonplace throughout the UK at various times of the year. It was usually, if not exclusively, carried out by groups of boys or young men, who might play a trick on the unlucky householder if they didn’t get what they asked for.
COLUMBIA, S.C. – It was announced Friday that Dr. Wendy Griffin would be stepping down as Academic Dean of Cherry Hill Seminary as of Feb. 1, 2018. She wrote, “I have had the privilege and pleasure of serving as Academic Dean of Cherry Hill Seminary and working with a group of extraordinarily committed and caring individuals. During that time, we have shaped the program academically to be ready for accreditation, and I’m proud of the work we’ve accomplished together.” Dr. Griffin took the position in 2010 with the commitment of five years. That ran over to seven years. She wrote, “I am now 76 years old and there are a few things in my life I want to attend to while I still have time, a 3rd novel to finish, climate change workshops to present, and traveling to do.”