Patti's Paganism / Wicca Blog

I recieved this by way of another online community, and everyone is being asked to pass it along. If you or someone you know is a veteran and a Druid, please take a moment to read this. It's a message from author Ellen Evert Hopman, and Selena Fox of Circle Sanctuary, who are working towards getting the Veteran's Administration to approve the Awen symbol for placement on the headstones of Druid veterans. Please do what you can to share it with any Pagan vets you may know, and feel to repost it on your own websites and blogs: Calling Druid Veterans

In what's most likely an effort to court the evangelical vote in the upcoming presidential election, candidate Barack Obama told an audience the other day that he hopes to revamp the Faith-Based Initiative program instituted by the Bush administration. In a speech in Zanesville, Ohio, Obama proposed working to make sure that any charity receiving government funding be monitored, ostensibly to keep them from prosetylizing to those who would benefit in their programs, and "to prevent any religion-based discrimination against potential recipients or employees".

While I'm somewhat disappointed to hear him even discuss this -- because I don't think the government has any business getting involved in faith-based anything -- there's a part of me that wonders if maybe restructuring the existing system isn't such a bad idea after all. Obviously, faith-based charities are here to stay, so maybe if they were more strictly regulated, people wouldn't find themselves at the receiving end of a "no food until you hear a sermon" situation.

I've also heard people complain with this logic: "Would a Wiccan charity be embraced as much as a Christian or Catholic charity is?" Well, my response to that is "Start one up and find out." If a Wiccan or Pagan group can present themselves with the level of organization and forethought that some of the charities run by mainstream religious groups have, then by all means, give it a shot.

What do you guys think? Should the government do away with faith-based initiatives completely, or regulate the system so that it's fair for everyone who might be receiving the benefits of those charities?

For hundreds of years, anyone could walk up to the giant monoliths at Stonehenge, on England's Salisbury Plain, and put their hands directly on the stones. However, since the 1970's, British officials have kept things roped off, and only opened the site for special events, such as solstice celebrations. Now, an English Druid named Arthur Uther Pendragon has set up camp at Stonehenge as a protest, asking British officials to remove the fences that block the site. He's also requesting that they build a tunnel over a nearby road, the A303, in order to cut down on the traffic flow near the monument.

Parliament decided last year that the cost of building a tunnel -- estimated at around 470 million pounds -- was just too high.

Pendragon has been camping near Stonehenge since the summer solstice, back on June 20. In addition to the fences and the tunnel issue, he says the government needs to improve the visitor's center, which was erected fourteen years ago as a temporary structure. "English Heritage won't do anything to improve it until the Government do something to improve the roads so nothing is going to change, but what I'm hoping to do is raise awareness that nothing is going to happen."

Our favorite fanatical family is as it again. The hatemongers at Westboro Baptist Church have announced that they plan to protest the funeral of comedian George Carlin, who died last week at the age of 71. Carlin, an avowed atheist, came under all kinds of fire during his lifetime, and seems to be catching just as much flack now that he's dead. Fred Phelps and his clan of bigots are going to show up and cause a scene at Carlin's memorial service, and their rambling press release refers to him as a "potty-mouth", apparently in hopes of appealing to the pre-school demographic amongst their flock. They also remind us that he "made lots of money making fun of God." Well, yeah, but he made fun of everything else too -- that's one of the things that made Carlin so brilliant. According to WBC, Carlin will be joined in hell by Jerry Seinfeld and Keith Olbermann.

Actually, that sounds like the opening line to a great joke: "So Jerry Seineld, Keith Olbermann, and George Carlin walk into hell..."

You're familiar with the WBC gang -- they're the delightful group of people who feel that it's okay to protest the funerals of fallen American soldiers, at which they show up holding signs that say the most vile things imaginable. They've even been ordered to pay restitution to at least one family, but that hasn't stopped them yet. I'm wondering if any members of the Patriot Guard will show up at Carlin's services?

Anyway, as my special gift to Fred Phelps and his minions, in honor of George Carlin, I present the Seven Words You Can't Say on TV (warning: don't open this at work). Wherever you may be, George, thanks for making us think while we laughed.

Today would have been the 52nd birthday of the late Scott Cunningham. Scott was the author of a number of extremely popular books on modern Wicca and Paganism, most of which are still in print and selling today. Perhaps his most enduring work is Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner. While it's not traditional, initiatory Wicca, it did lay the framework for many of the solitary practitioners who follow a Pagan path today.

Scott Cunningham died at the age of 36 following a decade-long illness. Fifteen years after his death, his body of work lives on as his legacy in the Wiccan and Pagan community.

I'd rather remove my eyes with a spork than sit through seven minutes of Kathy Lee Gifford, but reader TwinkerBelle tipped me off to this video of yesterday's Today Show. Apparently Kathy Lee was going around a wedding asking people little quizzy questions so she could give them gift bags. At around the 4:45 mark, here's the exchange:

Kathy Lee: Why do you wear your wedding band on your left hand ring finger? Is it because (a) most people write with their right hand? Is it (b), because Egyptians believed that finger follows the vein of love to the heart, or (c), the Pagans -- the nasty, bad Pagans -- believed it was bad luck to wear metal on your right side?

Now, I know Kathy Lee is all big into born-again Christianity, and she's quite devout -- more power to her, she's welcome to be. But really, Kathy Lee, was that little dig necessary? If she had said, "Those greedy, sneaky Jews" or "Those dirty, unwashed Hindus", or any other ugly stereotype, it would have been equally obnoxious.

Take the poll, and tell us what you think!



Oh, and if you want to tell MSNBC or the Today show what you think, you can do it here: Contact the Show.

The US Naval Academy has recieved a letter from an American Civil Liberties Union attorney, saying that if they don't do away with the lunchtime prayer at midshipmen's mess, they could face a lawsuit. Legal director Deborah Jeon said "some midshipmen have complained that they felt coerced to participate". It's not the first time a military academy has faced the issue; in 2003 VMI was informed that a federal court had ruled it unconstitutional to hold prayers before meals, in that it violated cadet's rights under the First Amendment.

The Naval Academy doesn't appear to be too eager to comply, though. In a statement released this week, a spokesperson said, "The academy does not intend to change its practice of offering midshipmen an opportunity for prayer or devotional thought during noon meal announcements."

Not surprising, since there seems to be an ongoing, unspoken pattern of discrimination amongst certain members of the military. Spec. Jeremy Hall, an atheist, sued the Army last year when he was singled out by officials at his base. Wiccan soldier Sgt. Patrick Stewart was killed in Afghanistan, and his widow had to fight the VA just to get a pent on his headstone. It's a shame -- these brave soldiers (and yes, I include the mids at the Naval Academy as soldiers) aren't being afforded those very freedoms they're willing to fight and even die to protect.

In yet another case of "religious freedom is fine but please don't do it in my community," a Florida neighborhood is up in arms about a resident who practices Santeria, and has been seen bringing goats and chickens into his home. The upscale community of Waterford Lakes, in Orange County, apparently has neighbors in a tizzy. Resident Hector Febus, who rents the home, was seen taking animals into the home, and when the police showed up, deputies say they interrupted a Santeria ceremony. However, according to federal law, animal sacrifice for religious purposes is protected under the Constitution.

In Santeria, animal sacrifice is typically limited to goats and chickens, although the folks at Waterford Lakes are apparently worried that their Labradoodles might suddenly start disappearing. The goats and chickens are ritually slaughtered as part of a ceremony, and then cooked and eaten. Now the homeowner's association is trying to figure out what they can do about it, since animal sacrifice isn't even mentioned in their bylaws.

Febus told reporters that on the night deputies stopped by, he was performing a healing ritual, and that while there were chickens present, they were simply for eating, and were not ritually sacrificed. He also permitted cameras inside his home and showed reporters a room where people come for consultations. He said that people have come to his house with cancer, and then been healed with "the gathering of the spirit and God."

Neighbor Ron Hardblower said, "Yeah, we are not happy about that type of religion... the religion itself is OK, but to have that here in this neighborhood?" Another resident said that she was concerned about people "harming animals", and questioned whether or not dogs and cats would be next.

From the BBC, a disturbing report comes to us out of Calcutta, of a rural family of four, all killed by their neighbors. Although there's some question about whether they were stoned to death or buried alive, one thing that seems certain is that they were killed because villagers feared the family was practicing witchcraft.

Authorities say that 65-year-old Lakhan Majhi was scheduled to face a "public trial" on Tuesday evening in the village of Koilajuli Milanpur, after hundreds of neighbors accused him of casting a spell on another villager who had sickened and died. Mahji and three family members were attacked with bricks and stones, and then dragged to a jungle and buried alive. This horrifying incident took place in the Assam province, where some 500 people have been killed in the past few years, because neighbors accused them of being witches.

Back in March, a woman in Bihar was tied to a tree and beaten by a mob for witchcraft. Typically, the victims of these crimes are older widows, and it's not uncommon for a woman in a tribal area to be accused of witchcraft just so someone can grab her land or property, or take revenge for spurned sexual advances. However, in the Mahji case, it looks like an entire family was victimized. No matter what the reason, it's a horrible, brutal thing.

I know how to crochet, but I have no idea how to explain it to other people... so when I saw Tammy Powley's instructions for this cute crocheted pouch amulet, I just had to share it. It's easy to make, and you can tailor it to your needs -- a protection amulet, a healing talisman, whatever you need. All it takes is a few scraps of yarn, your favorite gemstone, and a crochet hook.