CoG Rep. - Rachael Watcher elected to NAIN Board of Directors

The North American Interfaith Network held its annual meeting in Salt Lake City over this last weekend. Here is a report on the event from The Salt Lake Tribune:

Pictured from left, Tarunjit Singh Butalia, Executive Committee and Chair of the Interfaith Committee, Pastor Dean Jackson of the Rock Canyon Church, Imam Muhammed Mehtar of the Islamic Society of Greater Salt Lake and Gayla Sorenson, J.D., Senior Fellow, The International Center for the Study of Law and Religion.

"Religious awareness and sensitivity are the missing ingredients in American diplomacy, professional peacemaker Douglas Johnston told interfaith leaders gathered in Salt Lake City Monday.

Johnston, president and founder of the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy in Washington, D.C., freely quotes the Quran, refers to Islamic history and praises the goodness and accomplishments of Muslims in his work in Sudan, Kashmir, the Middle East and even this country to engage Muslims and others in conflict resolution." ...(Cont.)...

More info. on 2010 NAIN Connect -
What Happened at NAIN CONNECT This Year?!

Our CoG National Interfaith Representative - Rachael Watcher attended that meeting, and was elected to a four year term on the NAIN Board of Directors.  This is important news for Wiccans and Pagans everywhere.  Once again we are represented on the board of one of the oldest and most well respected interfaith organizations in North America.  This election of Rachael demonstrates that CoG's collective support for interfaith is reaping rewards of respect and inclusion for the entire Pagan community.

at The Parliament of the World's Religions in Australia

Photo from Earth Spirit Voices

Apocalypse 2012 sponsored by the "History Channel"

Here is an interesting article about the hype surrounding the year 2012 from Mark Sumner at the Daily Kos 

"...So why does everyone think such a prediction exists? Well, there are writers like Jenkins, stirring up a mishmash of personal ideas, drug dreams, and ludicrous interpretations of ancient texts. There are also all those web sites (all too easily found in a Google search) ready to sell you guides to either the spiritual enlightenment that will come with the dawning of this new age, or protection from cosmic rays / solar flares / asteroid impacts. There are directors like Roland Emmerich whose last fresh idea died a decade back leaving him with 2012 as just another excuse to blow things up on film. There are also some Christian ministries (the oh-so-reasonable John Hagee's among them) that have latched onto 2012 as another way to bolster their market for books sold based on End Times paranoia.

However, in this case there's a bigger reason why this silly idea has taken on a life of its own. It's called the History Channel."  ...(Cont.)...

Pagan Godspell - "To Make Sacred the Summer Night"

As we approach the upcoming Sabbat of Lammas or Lughnasadh, I found this interesting reflection from the Pagan Godspell blog:

"The hills are heavy with sweetness, and the sky blushes weekly with steel gray clouds that shatter in the night. Roasted sweet corn is the hallmark of the season here, delicious even as its industrial cousins, bred not for delight but for fattening feedlot cattle for inhumane slaughter or producing industrial “food” products, rustle bright with fireflies and despair at dusk. Lammas is nigh.

And as my thoughts turn to the mysteries of bread and feast, community and play and work, they turn also to ponderings on the nature of sacrifice. Lammas is, after all, in addition to all those wonderful other things, a feast of sacrifice. The grain is cut and threshed – John Barleycorn must die to feed the people. We pause in our playing and in the glory of the first harvest to think heavy thoughts about the fall of the Beloved*, to wonder at the sacrament of death and service, of what we might also give in our eternal exchange with the Mama, the Powers and the Spirits. On what we make sacred in our actions and our words."  ...(Cont.)...

                                                Traffic - John Barleycorn
John Renbourn Group - John Barleycorn

"John Barleycorn" - Steeleye Span

John Barleycorn - Fairport Convention
Oysterband - John Barleycorn
Jethro Tull- John Barleycorn  
The Young Tradition - John Barleycorn
The Imagined Village - John Barleycorn - Wychwood 2008
The Wild Oats: John Barleycorn
John Barleycorn - OBOD Lughnasadh camp 2008  

Some High Summer reflections

My Summer photos

(click on photos to enlarge)

Va. woman objects to 'fortune teller' label

Here is another story of an individual coming up against local fortune telling regulations as reported in The Washington Post

"A Chesterfield County, Va., woman claims county officials have violated her religious rights by defining her as a fortune teller rather than a spiritual counselor.

A hearing in Patricia Moore-King's lawsuit is set for Thursday in federal court in Richmond.

King claims she has been unable to obtain a business license because of the more stringent standards the county imposes on fortune tellers. For example, only fortune tellers are required get the police chief's permission to operate after submitting five references."  ...(Cont.)...

Pagan theology: Paganism and "Faith"

Over at the Pagan Pages site there is an interesting post by Porphyry on the question of "faith" in the Pagan community:

"...This, of course, is not easy, and we are constantly bombarded by things that cause us to question our faith, or lose it entirely [3]. For us (as opposed to Christians) it is the thrill of constantly re-finding our Gods and Goddesses in the natural world that sustains our faith and makes it continuous. Once committed to the faith of a Pagan it becomes much more difficult to lose faith as the Gods and the Goddesses are right here with us, immanent in the natural world." ...(Cont.)...

America's shortage of scientific jobs.

We have been told there is a shortage of well trained scientists here in America.  That may not be the case.  The shortage seems to be in good scientific jobs and careers as reported at the  Miller-McCune site:

"...America’s schools, it turns out, consistently produce large numbers of world-class science and math students, according to studies by Harold Salzman of the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University and his co-author, B. Lindsay Lowell, director of policy studies for the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University. But the incentives that once reliably delivered many of those high scorers into scientific and technical careers have gone seriously awry.

If the nation truly wants its ablest students to become scientists, Salzman says, it must undertake reforms — but not of the schools. Instead, it must reconstruct a career structure that will once again provide young Americans the reasonable hope that spending their youth preparing to do science will provide a satisfactory career.

“It’s not an education story, it’s a labor market story,” Salzman says."  ...(Cont.)...

Amazon Natives loosing control of ancestral lands

Here is an informative article about the troubles that indigenous people are having in the Eastern Amazon part of Peru as reported by Indian Country Today:

Credit: Photo by David Dudenhoefer

"...Margarita Benavides, sub-director of the Peruvian nonprofit Instituto del Bien Comun, which helps Native communities solicit title for their land, said Puerto Azul’s case is emblematic of a regional problem. Somewhere between 250 and 300 Native communities in the Peruvian Amazon lack titles for their land, and most of them face pressures from colonists, loggers, miners, or oil companies. In fact, the problem is so common that there is another Puerto Azul, a Harakmbut village in southeast Peru, that has waited 15 years for resolution of its title request.

Benavides explained that even Native communities with titles lack full control of their ancestral resources, because most of them depend on forested areas outside their territories for fruit, medicinal plants, building materials and hunting grounds, but the government has leased most of that land to loggers and oil companies. She said this situation led thousands of Amazonian Natives to join a 10-week regional protest last year organized by the Interethnic Development Association of the Peruvian Rainforest (AIDESEP) to demand the repeal of nine legislative decrees that threatened Native land rights. That protest culminated in a police crackdown in Bagua province that left nearly 200 protesters injured and 34 dead."  ...(Cont.)...

New Book - Sybil Leek: Out of the Shadows

Over at the Orlando Sentinel's religious blog there is an artcle about a new book coming out about the famous Witch - Sybil Leek. The title is Sybil Leek: Out of the Shadows by Christne Jones. From the book publisher's web site we have this discription:

"This is a unique book. It covers the life of Sybil Leek as experienced and shared by the author, Christine Jones, who was Sybil’s friend, student, and finally in the last months of her life, her nurse. Alongside a look at the life of this remarkable woman, the good and the bad, we find details of Sybil’s teachings on archangels, spellcrafting and herblore. The book also contains many rare and never before seen photos of Sybil and the people she connected with."

More on Sybil Leek
Wikipedia
Sybil Leek (1923-1983)
BBC - SYBIL LEEK - THE SOUTH'S WHITE WITCH
Amazon.com: Diary of a Witch Sybil Leek: Books
Witchcraft - Famous Witches - Sybil Leek
Sybil Leek: LibraryThing

The Non-Ferrous Metal Myth

There is an interesting post over at The Witch of Forest Grove blog about the use of non-ferrous metals in plant collecting:

"We’ve all heard it: “You can’t use any tool with iron in it to harvest plants. The blade has to be stone, bone, gold, silver or bronze – anything but iron and steel.” We’ve all heard the know-it-alls spouting this proverb, but where did it come from and what is the reasoning behind it?

This modern myth originates from two separate, possibly second or third hand, accounts from Pliny the Elder (a Roman author and army commander) of Gallic Druids harvesting plants."  ...(Cont.)...

Rogue preachers use 'witch' scares to abuse children

Here is a disturbing story from the U.K. as reported in The Independent:

"Children are being branded as witches in churches in the UK, with many suffering abuse from supposed exorcisms in which they are physically restrained and screamed at. But those are the lucky ones...

Last year her organisation dealt with at least 10 cases of children in Britain accused of being witches or possessed by evil spirits, including two children with "challenging behaviour" who were beaten by parents who believed they were possessed. In another case a disabled child was burnt with an iron in an attempt to get rid of the evil spirit blamed for the condition.

A 10-month undercover investigation into what takes place behind closed doors in some African churches has exposed pastors who exploit the religious beliefs of their congregations and then seek large sums of money in return for "deliverance" ...(Cont.)...

CoG member Peter Dybing asks us to "Walk the Talk"

In January I posted on the work of Peter Dybing  a solitary COG member originally from New Mexico. The post was titled: Support the work COG member Peter Dybing in Haiti .

Recently he has been working for the US Fish & Wildlife Service Incident Command Team in the Gulf of Mexico.

USFWS biologists/sea turtle experts Dianne Ingram (left)

and Lorna Patrick carefully monitor recently excavated

 sea turtle eggs in a temperature-controlled

container during a nest relocation

 at Port St. Joe, FL. Photo by Denise Rowell, USFWS

Here is the message he sent to me and others in the Pagan community:

"Walk The Talk

From the Rockies to the great heart of America each drop of rain starts it journey toward the peace that only the vast waters of the Gulf can grant. Today, however the gathering of waters is met with ecological disaster on an unimaginable scale. These waters, Gaia’s womb of life in our hemisphere, are fouled by arrogance, greed and mankind’s endless thirst for fossil fuels. Many pontificate on who is to blame, ignoring their own participation in this insult to the Goddess.

Instead let’s examine our use of resources: recognizing that these are gifts of the earth, do we hold sacred these exchanges or participate in the ever-growing arrogance of consumption? Do we sanctify our use of fuel, food and resources or revel in unabashed self-indulgence? In seeking justice for this wound inflicted on Mother Earth, will we first look to ourselves, our Pagan community? Have we matured sufficiently to seek first our own responsibility?

After 50 days working for the US Fish & Wildlife Service Incident Command Team in the Gulf these are the questions I asked of myself. In some ways my efforts to save wildlife helped my spirit keep peace with the Great Mother, yet my own answers to these uncomfortable questions left me unable to ignore my own culpability. Suddenly I was mindful that as a witness, responder and perpetrator of this event, life couldn’t continue as it was.

Each day we fight the great patterns of our planet, when it is cold, we burn fuels to warm our homes beyond what is necessary. When it is dark we light every nook and cranny. When it is hot we consume electricity to cool our homes. We who profess to worship Mother Earth are not unaccountable for the grieves injury recently inflicted upon her.

None of this is stated to imply that our community does not lead in promoting responsible use of resources, we do. Yet, for most of us, western life overwhelms our desire to do that which we know is right. It is seeing this in myself that drives me to call on our community to redouble our efforts to protect that which is sacred to us. Before we lay our sights on others, should we not first gaze upon ourselves in the fullness of insight that this disaster has produced?

This is a call for us to examine how fully our collective magik can be realized if we have not added to our intention our own changes in behavior. Today, will we take an action that will reduce our use of energy? On an ongoing basis let’s commit to be mindful of our energy use choices.

Pagan sisters and brothers, join me in an effort to further the healing of our mother through direct action that starts in our homes, covens and communities.

Peter Dybing"

Amanda Hill, USFWS Fisheries biologist, holds an oiled brown

 pelican captured off the coast of Louisiana on June 15th. Photo by Kim Betton, USFWS

USFWS/Southeast's photostream

Restore the Gulf. Gov

I want to volunteer. Who should I contact?

Which federally listed species might be impacted from oil spill coming ashore?

Daily Wildlife Collection Reports

CoG member Margot Adler on the Islamic Center near Ground Zero

CoG member and NPR reporter, Margot Adler  has an interesting story titled - Islamic Center Near Ground Zero Sparks Anger over at the NPR site.  It is available there in both in audio and written form.

"A proposed Islamic cultural center and mosque two blocks from the site of the destroyed World Trade Center has become a flash point of controversy.

The plan for Cordoba House has been in the works for a number of years. It is to be built on the site of the old Burlington Coat Factory store on Park Place, just about two blocks from ground zero.

The Islamic center is supported by most politicians in Manhattan and by religious leaders of many faiths. It is opposed by some Sept. 11 families, by conservative politicians, bloggers and Tea Party activists."  ...(Cont.)...

Tarot as the Greatest of Old Grimoires

Over at the blog - Talking About Ritual Magick there is an interesting article on the Tarot titled, Tarot as the Greatest of the Old Grimoires

"...In fact, I truly believe that the Tarot is the greatest of all grimoires, since it contains a veritable arsenal of magickal knowledge, symbology, analogies, spiritual hierarchies and the mechanism of transformation itself. Like other grimoires, it doesn’t have everything that is needed to practice ritual or ceremonial magick, but it has all of the source material needed to formulate and build all of the other pieces. The Tarot is the source of all Western occultism as well as the master key of correspondences. I will cover what is lacking in it as well as what is greatly abundant."  ...(Cont.)...

Book review - The Visions of Isobel Gowdie

Here is an interesting summary and review of the new book: The Visions of Isobel Gowdie: Magic, Witchcraft and Dark Shamanism in Seventeenth Century Scotland. It appears at the Magonia Review of Books blog.

"...Emma Wilby takes just such a line, in this exceptionally detailed study of the confessions of the 17th century Scots peasant woman, Isobel Gowdie. Wilby places these confessions and the stories contained within them in the detailed background of their time and culture. She examines the various influences which have been brought to bear, events in Isobel's lifetime (the shattering impact of the civil wars for example), the religious atmosphere of harsh Calvinism, the still often partly-Catholic, partly-'pagan' folk beliefs, the harsh daily lives of the people, the conditions of various members of the community, the role of interrogators etc. etc. She builds up a jigsaw of elements that go to construct Isobel's visionary experiences and memories.

For her, Isobel is at the very least a story teller, the sort of adept of narration so essential in pre-literate communities; a performer whose performance under interrogation may have been literally a performance of a lifetime. Beyond that, Wilby sees her as part of a shamanic tradition, which manifested in this time and place primarily through the fairy faith. This tradition is rooted in the 'secret night journey', in which people believe that while they are apparently lying in bed asleep, either in body or spirit they are engaged in various adventures. She points to several versions of this tradition such as the benandanti of Friuli as described by Carlo Ginzburg, or the Corsican Mazzeri as described by Dora Carrington, or to the persistent notion of the female night journey in the company of the Lady of the Night under various names. A darker version of this host was the Wild Hunt or the fairy sluagh."  ...(Cont.)...



More
The words of Isobel Goudie in  SHADOW OF THE HARE (Maddy Prior)
Isobel Gowdie - The Sensational Alex Harvey Band

Sacred Dance

More sacred dance
Balet Johrei
Phoenix Firedancers: CLASSICAL FIRE
Belly dance superstars
Rachel Brice - Gothic Tribal Fusion
Le Sacre du Printemps (Le Sacrifice: Danse Sacrale)
PASSION - MOMIX
Roberto Bolle - The Dance of a God
Aida, Roberto Bolle danza quasi NUDO
Sylvie Guillem - Maurice Béjart - Boléro
Wet Woman (full Ver) - Sylvie Guillem  
Gillian Norris - Lord Of The Dance - Gypsy
Feet of Flames - Cry of the Celts
salome (R. Strauss) 
Savitha Sastry Bharatanatyam Performance
Cirque du Soleil - Quidam
Cirque du Soleil - Alegria
Mercedes Neito -Oriental Dance Theatre
EnTransz - Németh Krisztina, Nieto Mercedes
Silvina Cortés - Travesías
Silvina Cortés - Stetel
Adrian Herrero
(DANZA DEL VENADO)
Jorge Reyes "sacrificio"
Music and Dance Native American
Native American Music Video
DANCE This 2008: African Dance

"Did Rupert Murdoch Kill Beliefnet?"

Here is a story about the religious news portal - Beliefnet. Beliefnet has Gus DiZerega's A Pagan's Blog as part of their lineup.  In a column today, Michael Triplett at the Mediaite site extensively quotes Jason Pitzl-Waters of The Wild Hunt about beliefnet's problems:

"...Jason Pitzl-Waters, who is at the epicenter of the online Pagan community and has been critical of Beliefnet for failing to include Pagans, agreed.

The site itself, aside from a few of its blogs, was so watered down as to be completely uninteresting to those looking for something aside from bland platitudes and feel-good inspirational stories. As others have complained, the site seemed direction-less, purpose-less.

With blogs like “Our Lady of Weight Loss,” “The Queen of My Self,” and “Lessons from a Recovering Doormat,” the site has taken on a very Oprah-like presence.

“I think News Corp “blinked” on doing something about it, and were afraid to dismantle the successful newsletter programs and hits-generating “stories” like “Beach Quotes” or “21 Tips to Help A Grieving Friend” in order to point it in a new direction. Instead they just added more “stuff” and made the site more confusing,” Pitzl-Waters said."  ...(Cont.)...

The above is just one of many examples of Jason's influence, and I am happy to announce that I and other members of NCLC have arranged to have Jason as a guest at this year's Merrymeet to discuss Pagans and the media.  I believe his presentation will be extremely important and is not to be missed.

Pagan music festival in Maine

Here is a story of intrest from the Bangor Daily News:

"UNITY, Maine— Christians have gospel and praise music festivals.

Jews gather for battles of klezmer bands.

Maine’s pagan community now has a celebration devoted to its own religious music.

The Eastern Maine Pagan Pride Association will sponsor the state’s first pagan music festival Saturday at Unity College’s Center for the Performing Arts.

The event, which will include local pagan vendors, was organized as a fundraiser for the recently organized pagan pride group, based in Bangor. It also will be a chance to celebrate the polytheistic faith many followers feel is misunderstood by the general public, according to organizers."  ...(Cont.)...

From the Satyr’s Mouth

Over at The House of Vines Blog there is an interesting review of the new book, From the Satyr’s Mouth: Wit and Wisdom from an Opinionated Polytheist.  Here is what they have to say about the book.

"In ancient Greece, satyrs were famed for their mocking criticism of societal conventions. H. Jeremiah Lewis brings that same spirit to a discussion of contemporary Pagan life and values in this latest collection of essays.

“[Lewis] not only transcends the trend towards a universalizing Wicca within the Pagan publishing world today, but also deepens the culture of polytheist reconstructionism by challenging some of the assumptions and prejudices that have arisen within it. He is the rare breed that speaks truth to power not just when it’s convenient, or easy, but when he feels it is right to do so."  ...(Cont.)...

Rosicrucian Museum - esoteric conference

I found this  story from our NCLC service area about the Rosicrucian Museum and Park in San Jose California. They are sponsoring a conference titled - "Hidden in Plain Sight: The Influence of Western Esoteric Movements on Modern Thought."  It will be July 22–25, but unfortunately it is sold out.  However some of the presentations will be put out on YouTube for later viewing.  Here is more information from the metroactive site:

"IF ANY one slogan describes the Rosicrucian Research Library, it would be "Hidden in plain sight." The library occupies an 80-year-old building at the back of Rosicrucian Park and provides the most comprehensive collection of esoteric readings anywhere in San Jose.

Anyone from the public is allowed to hang out—it isn't restricted to Rosicrucians—but everything in Rosicrucian Park seems to exist behind some veneer of mystery. It's just how they operate.

Esoteric voyagers from across the globe submitted academic papers and will be descending upon San Jose to present their research...The now-sold-out conference features a lineup of highly intriguing individuals. Every man and woman involved will be a star."  ...(Cont.)...

Rath Yatra Festival

Photo: Sam Panthaky / AFP/Getty Images

From Sify News:
"Thousands of devotees and foreign tourists chanting 'Hare Krishna' Tuesday pulled the chariots of Lord Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra during the annual Ratha Yatra (chariot festival) here.

Organised by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON, the procession with the deities astride three chariots snaked its way from Park Circus Maidan of South Kolkata to reach the Ganga Sagar Mela near Babughat in the central part of the city.

The Rath Yatra marks the annual journey of the three deities from their abode to their aunt's house." ...(Cont.)...

Photo: Sam Panthaky / AFP/Getty Images

"Hindus throng around the chariot of Lord Jagannath during Lord Jagannath's 133rd. Rath Yatra procession in Saraspur area of Ahmedabad on July 13, 2010. The idols of Lord Jagannath, his sister Subhadra and his brother Balram were placed on decorated chariots and went around a 14 Kms long route in which thousands of devotees joined the procession."

Spiral Dance - "The Goddess and the Weaver"

From the Australian band - Spiral Dance


"The band was formed in 1992 as a project to explore some of the more mystical elements in life and has drawn its energy from the songwriting and vocal skills of Adrienne Piggott:

"Having grown up surrounded by magic and a love of legends, I longed to put these feelings into song. I believe we all have an affinity with the magical elements of our existance and the songs are written to invoke these emotions from within. These impressions need not be left in our childhood."

Adrienne's haunting lyrics are supported by intoxicating guitar riffs, evocative fiddle and groovy accordion lines, underpinned with potent bass and dynamic percussion, all carefully arranged to blend acoustic folk-rock with lush Celtic harmony, creating an almost tangible musical aura that envelopes the audience"

More from Spiral Dance
Spiral Dance- Faerie Tale
Spiral Dance - Witches Tree
Spiral Dance : Woman Of The Earth
Spiral Dance Live
Tolven Stone
Spiral Dance at Ruta Maya in Austin Texas
Spiral Dance, Wendy Rule, Lizzy Rose etc : Burning Times
Weaving The Summer
Spiral Dance : tune set
Spiral Dance : The Oak
Spiral Dance and Damh The Bard : Spirit Of Albion
Spiral Dance at Salem Cinema Pt 1  
Spiral Dance Salem Cinema, Pt 2

The Case of Patrick McCollum & Occult jobs in Tulare County California

Here are basically two stories which I think are related, but there may be more to this than meets the eye.  First, we have the case of Patrick McCollum which is summed up by Jason over at The Wild Hunt Blog:

"...About Patrick McCollum: Patrick McCollum has been working as a Pagan chaplain and activist for well over twenty years. He was one of the founding members of the Lady Liberty League, and has been involved in numerous legal struggles involving modern Pagans. In recent years he has received attention for his appearance before the US Commission on Civil Rights in Washington, DC, to speak at a briefing focused on prisoners’ religious rights (full transcript of the proceedings), and for his meeting with Obama Administration officials concerning interfaith relations and discrimination against minority faiths in America. On Imbolc of this year, McCollum was installed to the Executive Board of Directors of a United Nations NGO, Children Of The Earth. McCollum currently serves as an unpaid statewide correctional chaplain for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation in all 33 CDCR correctional institutions.

Patrick M. McCollum; et al., v. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; et al.: The current case, which has been in litigation for five years, and is currently before the 9th Circuit, centers on the State of California’s “five faiths” policy. This policy limits the hiring of paid chaplains to Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and Native American adherents." ...(Cont.)...

Second,  we have is a report from our California central valley about occult related jobs springing up in this rural for the most part agricultural county.  This recent story is from the Visalia Times Delta.

"Once each week Visalia resident Joseph Nichter packs up his candles, incense and crystals and heads off to Avenal State Prison to minister to the prison yard.

The former Army forward observer and Iraq war veteran is an imposing sight, standing at 6'4", close-cropped hair, dressed from head to toe in black. But once inside the prison walls, his mission at Valley correctional facilities is a surprising one.

Nichter ministers to what he calls the prison's "minority faiths." One day it might be a group of odinists; on another day a Buddhist inmate may want counseling. Then there may be rastafarians, druids or santerians who need him to stand by or conduct a religious ceremony.

He's one of a growing number of Tulare County residents whose job choices may seem a little offbeat to many of their friends and family. But from ministering to a little-known religious faith, to photographing auras to investigating the county's haunted locations, a growing number of residents are making a living traveling down a path much less traveled."  ...(Cont.)...

The question is, is Mr. Nichter being paid for this work, and if so how does that relate to Mr. McCollum's case before the courts?  Is Mr. Nictor's job a positive development indicating that the state is ready to settle Mr. McCollum's suit providing Pagan inmates with equal religious access, or is something else going on here?  I believe there are folks in our Northern California Local Council who work with Partick and can find out some answers. When they do, I will report it here as more becomes known.

Circle Cemetery - America's first national Pagan burial ground

Some very important news for our Pagan community comes from Circle Sanctuary regarding the first officially recognized Pagan cemetery.  Here is the story of Circle Cemetery:

Memorial for Marion Weinstein

"Circle Cemetery is located at Circle Sanctuary Nature Preserve, just north of Barneveld, Wisconsin, about 25 miles west of Madison near Blue Mound State Park. Founded in 1995, Circle Cemetery is the first National Pagan Burial Ground and one of the first exclusively "Green" or Conservation Cemeteries in the United States. Conservation cemeteries are as the name implies – cemeteries situated in preserved natural areas. They usually include places for cremains as well as sites for Green burials. Green burial is returning a non-embalmed body to the earth in a natural, biodegradable container.

Circle Cemetery is located in the heart of our 200-acre Nature preserve founded in 1983. In 1995, we dedicated the original part of our cemetery as a Green cemetery as well as a national cemetery for practitioners of the Wiccan religion, Paganism, Ecospirituality, and other forms of Nature religion. Since that time cremains of seventeen Pagans have been placed at the Cemetery, including those from Wisconsin, New York, Nevada, Utah, California, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and South Carolina."  ...(Cont.)...

Two views - Columbia - Patron Goddess of USA

Over at the Pagan Newswire Collective they have a section titled  Pagan + Politics, and there I found the following interesting article titled - Columbia, Patron Goddess of the United States

"...From the beginning, when Columbia was first revealed as the Goddess of this land, She was seen as a guardian of freedom and a generous granter of plenty. In early depictions of Columbia, she wears the cap of freedom and holds a cornucopia. The eagle and the rattlesnake are sacred to Her.

Today I honor Her with offerings and pray that She blesses us with Her gifts. I ask Her to guide us – our country seems to be at a crossroads and is facing difficult times. Our nation’s identity and ethics are muddled. How I wish Her statue was still behind the Speaker’s chair in the House of Representatives – having Columbia Liberty as a guide for our elected officials..."  ...(Cont.)...

Now we have another view from the Blog - Meadowsweet & Myrrh:

"...Columbia, a goddess created (or, as [some] say, “revealed”) in the 18th century, was named after Christopher Columbus, the first European known to have enslaved anyone in the New World. Columbus arrived in the Caribbean with the explicit and open intent of capturing slaves and stealing gold, not to mention spreading Catholicism around the world, so it is extremely ironic that the goddess named after him would come to be associated with freedom and plenty. Freedom and plenty for whom?

Phyllis Wheatley, writing in 1776, was the first known person to speak of Columbia as a goddess [...]. Born in Senegal and enslaved at age eight, she was named “Phyllis” after the ship that brought her to America. She was purchased by the rich Wheatley family of Boston, and adopted as their daughter. They gave her an education, and her poetry was read in England and throughout America. She married John Peters, a free black man, in 1778, but he was put in debtor’s prison shortly thereafter, leaving her alone with a sickly infant daughter. In the land of freedom and plenty, she inherited no money from the Wheatleys and, indeed, was legally unable to own property; so she had to set aside her poetry and work as a scullery maid at a boarding house. She died at age 31.

Again, ironic; but I for one am not surprised at how Columbia rewarded her prophet." ...(Cont.)...

Mother Nature's Child Trailer

"This is an introduction to our forthcoming film about nature's essential role in three phases of childhood: toddlers, middle childhood and adolescence. Today nature deficit disorder threatens the health and well-being of our children. MOTHER NATURES CHILD addresses this threat and explores the benefits of time in nature. We are seeking completion funding in order to release the film by mid 2010.


More
Mother Nature's Child web page
Facebook

Witchcraft or Mental Illness?

Discussing a study of mental illness as it related to witchcraft throughout the ages, Dr. Beatriz Quintanilla. made a presentation at the 2010 American Psychiatric Association meeting . Dr Quintanilla was able to match the symptoms of people condemned as witches with associated neurological and psychiatric disorders, such as epilepsy and hysteria.

Constantine Cavafy: ITHACA - ΙΘΑΚΗ

Ithaca
As you set out for Ithaca
Hope that your journey is a long one,
Full of adventure full of discovery.

Laestrygonians and Cyclops
Angry Poseidon -- do not be afraid of them:
You'll never find things like that on your way
As long as you keep your thoughts raised high
As long as a rare sensation touches
your spirit and your body.

Laestrygonians and Cyclops
wild Poseidon -- you won't encounter them
Unless you bring them along inside your soul
Unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

Hope that your journey is a long one,
May there be many summer morning
When with what pleasure what joy
You come into harbours seen for the first time.
May you stop at Phoenician trading stations
To buy fine things, mother- of pearl- and coral, amber and ebony.
Sensual perfume of every kind
As many sensual perfumes as you can.

And may you visit many Egyptian cities
To learn and learn again from those who know.

Keep Ithaca always in your mind
Arriving there is what you are destined for.

But do not hurry the journey at all
Better if it lasts for years
So that you are old by the time you reach the island
Wealthy with all you have gained on the way
Not expecting Ithaca to make you rich.

Ithaca gave you the marvellous journey
Without her you would not have set out
She has nothing left to give you now.

And if you find her poor
Ithaca won't have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become
So full of experience
You will have understood by then
What these Ithacas mean.

Constantine P. Cavafy (1911)

An Oakland CA, Santeria Priest, Beckons Spirits With His Beats

Here is a local story of intrest from our NCLC service area as reported by Alex Wolens of the SF Weekley

"Erick Santero, the Latino musician & DJ, will bring what he calls a "multimedia and multidisciplinary performance" to the upcoming All Shook Down Festival in North Beach on July 25. Recently added to the lineup, Santero's hip-hop & reggaeton stylings share an aesthetic with the likes of Don Omar and Daddy Yankee, but they also contain fossils of traditional African drumming. That's appropriate, since Santero believes in the power of music and dancing for spiritual emancipation. Perhaps it's because he's an ordained priest in the Santeria religion,,,"  ...(Cont)...

Pagan Summer holiday of Kupala in the Ukraine

For over a thousand years now after Christianity came to Eastern Europe the Ukrainian people continue to celebrate the Pagan Summer holiday of Kupala.  Here as a view of the festivities from the Kyiv Post

"...This is exactly the case with Ivana Kupala, the Ukrainian holiday celebrated after the summer solstice, usually on the night of July 6.

The name Kupala refers to the god of fruits of the earth. His holiday is considered to be one of the most magical ones in the Ukrainian calendar. Fortune-telling, jumping over cleansing fires and other mystical rituals have traditionally been part of it."  ...(Cont.)...

The magical and spiritual practice of weaving

 Over at The Magical Buffet Blog, writer Paula Chaffee Scardamalia introduces us to the magical and spiritual craft of weaving in her post titled Weaving a Woman's Life

"...Woven means that there are vertical threads and horizontal threads crossing over and under each other to create the fabric (remember making those loop potholders as a child?). Weaving’s structure is basic and symbolic. In that physical act of horizontal over vertical the metaphysical is invoked. Within so many world religions and spiritual traditions, there is the crossing of the horizontal over the vertical – the Christian cross, the Celtic cross, the pagan cross, the Egyptian ankh, the Druidic Tree of Life, Native American traditions’ honoring of the four directions, and others – that often represents both the masculine and feminine forces, the material and the spiritual, in relationship to each other."  ...(Cont.)...

British Panel exonerates Climate Scientists

A few months back some letters were stolen from a server at University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit and published on the Internet.  This began what is known as Climategate. The letters led to many allegations of scientific misconduct, and the furor over the e-mails fed the notion that a closed community of climate scientists was systematically exaggerating the threat of climate change, and ignoring skeptics arguments.

The scandal in November, 2009 destabilized the U.N. climate change conference at Copenhagen and led to the temporary resignation of Climatic Research Unit director Phil Jones. Now we have this just in from The New York Times

"A British panel issued a sweeping exoneration on Wednesday of scientists caught up in the controversy known as Climategate, saying it found no evidence that they had manipulated their research to support preconceived ideas about global warming.

.The researcher at the center of the controversy, a leading climatologist named Phil Jones, was immediately reinstated to a job resembling his old one at the Climatic Research Unit of the University of East Anglia. That unit, often referred to by its initials, has played a leading role in efforts to understand the earth’s past climate." ...(Cont.)...

More - Climategate
Q&A: 'Climategate' explained
'Climategate' scientists cleared of dishonesty
'Climategate' Investigation VINDICATES Scientists, Finds Research Reliable
'Climategate' professor gets his job back
Vindicated scientists warn against rising climate risks
Dutch agency affirms IPCC findings
Update July 19, 2010 - 'Climategate' fallout may impact legislation
Climategate: an exercise in irrelevance
Is Climate Change Worth Tackling? A Reply To Jim Manzi.
The Daily Climate

Joanna Macy and "The Great Turning"

From Bioneers web-site
"Joanna Macy, a renowned Buddhist teacher, eco-philosopher, systems theorist, and scholar, is a longtime activist in the peace, justice, and ecology movements. Her wide-ranging work spans Eastern and Western thought and seeks to bring to human consciousness the perspectives of other life forms, as well as those of past and future generations. Joanna's experiential group work, known to activists around the world as The Work That Reconnects, seeks to convey the extraordinary opportunity of being alive now to serve the survival of life on Earth. Joanna’s many seminal books include: Despair and Personal Power in the Nuclear Age; Dharma and Development; Thinking Like a Mountain; Coming Back to Life: Practices to Reconnect Our Lives, Our World; Widening Circles; and, most recently, World as Lover, World as Self."
 
More - Joanna Macy
Joanna Macy - Welcome to All Beings
Coming back to life: practices to reconnect our lives, our world
The Great Turning
Joanna Macy Biography
YouTube
Joanna Macy Part 2 (of 3)
Joanna Macy Part 3 (of 3)
Joanna Macy on The Great Turning
The Great Turning Film: Joanna Macy on Uncertainty
Joanna Macy - The Turning Point
Praises-Joanna Macy
Joanna Macy and Leanne Allison in Conversation

The economic recovery is mostly female

Here is some positive news for the average american woman as reported by Newsweek Magazine:

"When historians write about the great recession of 2007–08, they may very well have a new name for it: the Mancession. It’s a term already being bandied about in the popular media as business writers chronicle the sad tales of the main victims of the recession: men. They were disproportionately represented in the industries hit hardest during the downturn, including financial services, manufacturing, and construction, and their higher salaries often put them first in the line of fire. Men are the victims of two thirds of the 11 million jobs lost since the recession began in 2007; in August 2009, when U.S. male unemployment stood at 11 percent (versus 8.3 for women), it was the largest unemployment gender gap in the postwar era...

American women are already the breadwinners or co-breadwinners in two thirds of American households; in the European Union, women filled 75 percent of the 8 million new jobs created since 2000. Even with the pay gap factored into the equation, economists predict that by 2024, the average woman in the U.S. and a number of rich European countries will outearn the average man." ...(Cont.)...

Organic agriculture seems better at controlling pests

Here some interesting information from Washington State University as reported by Science News:

"There really is a balance of nature, but as accepted as that thought is, it has rarely been studied. Now Washington State University researchers writing in the journal Nature have found that more balanced animal and plant communities typical of organic farms work better at fighting pests and growing a better plant." ...(Cont.)...