Paganism
Guest Column: Returning to Brigid in the Midst of Loss
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In a special Imbolc piece, guest columnist Sheri Barker shares her story of grief after the passing of her daughter and her return to the comfort of the goddess Brigid.
News
UK Pagans respond to questions on the origins of Easter and Ostara
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[Please welcome Liz Williams our new UK correspondent and journalist.]
UNITED KINGDOM — You can always tell that it’s spring when the UK online Pagan community starts linking to articles by writer Adrian Bott, also known as Cavalorn. Bott came into prominence a few years ago with his blog posts regarding the origins of Ostara. Rather than taking on board the received wisdom about this festival, he began a rigorous examination of the actual origins of the holiday’s name. Bott began by linking Ostara back to an obscure reference in the writings of the Venerable Bede called The Reckoning of Time, which was then picked up by the Brothers Grimm. His posts were often contentious, challenging the accepted idea that Ostara was an ancient Germanic goddess of the dawn or of springtime, or that she had anything to do with hares, eggs, or indeed chocolate.