This Is A Terrorist Act

(Cleburne, Texas) Three teens charged in the vicious beating last October of a gay high school student pleaded innocent Thursday at their arraignment.

The name of the 17 year old victim is being withheld from publication at the request of his family and police.

He was beaten and then stomped on and kicked with steel-toe boots. His injuries were so severe he needed reconstructive face surgery and may have permanent damage.

Police say the 17 year old student had gone to a party being thrown by other teens. Soon after he arrived, according to the police report, "one of the three individuals asked [him] if he was gay or bisexual."

When he answered yes, he was struck in the face. When he fell to the floor the others then beat and kicked him until he was nearly unconscious.

Several girls at the party managed to drag him from the onslaught and help him to a hospital.

Christopher Paul Lathers, 18, faces a felony charge of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury. The second-degree felony was elevated to a first-degree felony when a hate-crime element was added.

Billy Lynn Calahan, 19, and Cory Dallas Gibson, 17, face misdemeanor charges that were elevated to Class A misdemeanors with the hate-crime element. Calahan is accused of punching and Gibson is accused of kicking the victim.

The three, who were indicted last month, (story) have been released on bail pending trial. They will be subject to random drug tests and are prohibited from drinking alcohol.

If convicted of the hate charge Lathers could face up to 99 years in prison.

The charges against Calahan and Gibson carry a possible punishment of 20 years in prison.

This...Is Annoying

I just set up a blog about Tarot, and I included in it my review of Kris Waldherr's deck "The Goddess Tarot." I have a lot of reservations about the deck, esp. when I see some of the associations she has made. And there's one in particular that really annoys the living hell out of me...her associations of Freyja with the suit of Wands and with the Emperor card.

Like Silver Ravenwolf who thinks that Freyja is a "Scandinavian Lunar Goddess" and that the Norns are CELTIC in origin, Waldherr clearly has NOT read any of the original Norse lore at all and got to know the Asynjor on their own terms.

Given that Freyja is one of the Vanir, and given than Vanaheim is a watery realm, I'd have associated Freyja with the suit of Cups. Not Wands, which is associated with Fire. Put Brighid or Hestia there.

People need to start reading the Eddas and really learning about the Asynjor and learning that there ARE other Norse Goddesses out there such as Frigg, who I think would be more appropriate for the Emperor card given her status in Asgard. Hey, she's the Queen!

Argh. Just a pet peeve of mine.

Non PC Thought

I just read a news story about that tsunami wave that killed all those people in Asia.

And I realized that there are a lot of Christians out there who are going to use this, as well as the 4 hurricanes that kicked our asses here in FL, to justify their "end times" talk.

I think that's really horrible.

Natural disasters are just that...natural disasters. I hardly think the people who have suffered so much need to hear "this is God punishing us for being so sinful."

Ya know what? If God wanted to target sins like homosexuality, and He supposedly acts through natural disasters like this, then let him send a tsunami to San Francisco and wipe out ONLY the gay people there. How come that hasn't happened yet? Or, if the politicians in this country are so awful, then let the White House be destroyed by a nor'easter. Hell, when Orlando put up rainbow flags all over the place for Pride Month a few years ago (and did the city ever look festive with all that color all over the place) and then the brushfires started and Messers Robertson and Falwell said that God was sending the fires to punish Orlando for upholding gay people with the Pride flags, they forgot one very important detail.

THE FREAKING FIRES CAME NOWHERE NEAR THE CITY OF ORLANDO!

I hereby officially flip the bird to Messers Robertson and Falwell. We weren't freaking well punished for freaking well having some freaking rainbow freaking flags on the freaking lampposts in freaking downtown freaking Orlando. Neener neener neener!

But seriously...let's look at this. Brushfires are not an unusual occurence in Florida. Just as earthquakes are not an unusual occurence in California. If Hollywood were to get wiped off the map by an earthquake, I'm sure the Robertsonians and Falwellians would be saying, "See? THERE you have a situation of God punishing those sinful people!" No, there you have a situation of a major entertainment center taking its chances being built in a state whose backbone is a freaking FAULT LINE!

Let's see an earthquake happen somewhere that these things never happen. And I mean nowhere NEAR a fault line. Let's see a brushfire happen on top of Mt. Everest, where there's nothing but SNOW. Let's see a hurricane or tsunami take out Lhasa, the former capital of Tibet, where the Dalai Lama lived -- Tibet having the nickname of "the Rooftop of the World."

If all of a sudden Florida became locked in ice -- and we're talking to the levels of the last Ice Age, not just the time it snowed in Orlando many years ago, and yes it has snowed in Orlando but the snowflakes didn't make it all the way to the ground but melted about 3' above ground -- then we'll talk about God punishing people via natural disasters.

I'm glad Brother Jim isn't here to see this. I'm sure he'd tell me this is exactly what it is and justify it with Scripture. And that would only piss me off.

Egil's Saga *edit*

I'm reading this story about this Viking man who lived near the turn of the first century in Iceland, and I'm seeing something interesting here.
Egil Skallagrimsson was a nasty bastard. Yet for all he had his truly evil and dangerous side - he made his first killing at the age of 6 - he also had a side of him that was very shrewd, very poetic (he was gifted by Odin not only the berserkergang which is the warrior's fury but also the poetic frenzy) and very staunch to his values.

He didn't back down from anything for shit. I'm only halfway through the story, and it's absolutely riveting. I've never read anything like it; it'd make a kick-ass movie or series. It's said that Iceland is the single most literate nation on earth, and with amazing stories like THIS it doesn't surprise me. And this isn't even fiction or fantasy; it's supposedly real. But it reads like a Tolkein novel or something like that...at least, this translation of it does (the one I'm reading now is the Penguin Classic version, translated by Hermann Palsson and Paul Edwards). Stace, your inner English major would really like this, if only because of its sharp, blunt descriptions and naked passion. It's very simply written but there's an elegance to its simplicity. And it moves, moves, moves.

Anyway, Egil is the consummate Icelander and Viking. Well, originally his family was from Norway but they had to leave the country when Skallagrim Kveldulfson, Egil's father, refused to be King Harald Fairhair's man because King Harald had killed Skallagrim's brother Thorolf Kveldulfson (Thorolf being Egil's uncle). Here's where it gets like the notorious Hatfields & McCoys (keeping in mind that I am related by marriage to the Hatfield clan on my mother's side).

Thorolf Kveldulfson had been a loyal steward of King Harald, but another family who felt that they'd been cheated of their inheritance and this inheritance having been unfairly given to Thorolf began bending the ear of Harald, and slandering Thorolf. When this got back to Thorolf, he took the attitude of, "Hey -- if the King chooses to listen to these bitter fellows over a loyal steward of his own, then he doesn't deserve my loyalty any more. Fuck the King." Balls to the wall. It was giving responsibility into Harald's own hands for the way he treated his loyal landholders. Harald got irritated at this attitude of Thorolf's and eventually had Thorolf killed and all of Thorolf's men as well, and seized Thorolf's property (including his wife) and gave most of it into the hands of the two brothers who'd been slandering Thorolf. Those two brothers were of distant relation to Kveldulf's family but of questionable legitimacy; it's thought that the mother and father were never legally married, but they felt entitled to that property anyway. And they ended up getting it, by hook and crook.

Skallagrim of course refused to swear fealty to King Harald after the death of his brother, saying that he believed it would go about as well for him to serve Harald as it had gone for unfortunate Thorolf, and this pissed the King off. So Skallagrim and his family, including his two sons Thorolf Skallagrimson (naturally given the same first name as his deceased uncle Thorolf, in his honor) and Egil Skallagrimson, flew to Iceland and set up a farmstead there and began trading and raiding and doing what Vikings do. Old Kveldulf dies on the passage to Iceland - more than slightly reminiscent of Moses never making it to the Promised Land.

By the way...notice how the names progress? Kveldulf is the grandfather, and his sons Thorolf and Grim took their dad's name as their last name, becoming Thorolf Kveldulfson and Grim Kveldufson. Kveldulfson means "son of Kvelduf" and Kveldulf itself means "night wolf." The old man Kveldulf himself was originally named Ulf ("wolf") Bjalfason, but because he was so big and strong people just started calling him "Kveldulf" and the nickname stuck. Now Grim Kveldulfson went bald early in his life, and he acquired the nickname "Skallagrim" or "Bald Grim." The name most people would have known him as would have been Skallagrim Kveldulfson. Skallagrim then married and had two sons, Thorolf Skallagrimsson and Egil Skallagrimsson - that is, Thorolf son of Skallagrim and Egil son of Skallagrim.

It's almost like the Scottish "Mc" something like McTavish. Son of Tavish. Mc or Mac is like the Irish O' as in O'Sullivan. My friend Anne's surname is Sullivan, but it used to be O'Sullivan, except her father dropped the O' because it was just too long to sign on credit card receipts! Hahaha!

Damn and blast. Joe just told me that Gen. Norman Schwartzkopf's surname means "black head." HAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!! "Schwartz" means "black" in German, and "kopf" means "head."

At any rate, I'm seeing this Egil person in a really weird light. He reminds me of me! He reminds me of the way I go off and I also don't easily forget when I've been wronged (just as Egil's family didn't forget the way Harald killed Thorolf) and I don't back down from my principles. I even pointed that out to Joe. I said, "Dude, you admire this quality in Egil, that he never backed down...yet you complain to me when I do it and you bitch about me refusing to compromise." He just looked at me with a wry smile on his face. I hope I made my point.

Egil's story shows me what life is like when lived with passion and fire. Sometimes property and family and friends and even life itself is lost -- but those people knew where they stood on things. Some would read this and say they were fricking crazy, but there was no hesitation with these bold people. They came right out and declared where they stood on things, and acted on it. They all lived heroically. Not just Egil himself, but Egil's kin and the people who chose to be loyal to them and share their sufferings even unto the death with them. When two people swore blood-brotherhood, they damn well meant it, and it meant that you could be asked to die alongside your blood-brother, and they all knew this. The bonds these people created between each other were taken very seriously, and in light of the customs of the times they were expected to behave a certain way when under certain social obligations. Much was asked of people then, but much was to be gained.

When one reads Egil's Saga, the first part dealing with old man Kveldulf may seem superflous, but it really isn't. It's necessary to set the scene and show what kind of environment Egil was born into and why it influenced him to be the person he turned out to be. Like I said, it's an amazing read.

There's much about Egil that most people won't like. He's deadly. He doesn't hold his ale well. He's damn stubborn and very sharp of tongue. But he's decisive and fearless and doesn't let anything stand in his way. There is one somewhat amusing feature about Egil - unlike the Irish heroes, who are said to be hot and sexy, Egil is described as being so butt-ugly that if someone had a dog who looked like him, better to shave the dog's ass and teach it to walk backwards. Man. No beautiful fair-haired blue-eyed hero here. *grin*

Well, anyway, I just had to put that out there.

Jul 2004

Made it to the dawn. Hail to thee day, all hail day's sons. Hail night and daughters of night. Hail Delling and Sunna and Dag and all deities of the new day.

It was really fun. We had several people who stayed all night long, not just the usual 4 or 5, and we were all just laughing and chatting and talking and munching on feast food and drinking and generally enjoying ourselves. The temperatures didn't get that low all night; I had a fleece sweatshirt on over a T shirt, and I sat in a chair on a light blanket...but I didn't need my winter coat. With the bonfire, it was quite comfortable. I don't feel like I'm going to get sick this year.

The ritual went off fairly well. There is one portion I forgot to do, but hey. I don't think the Gods are too offended. *grin* Joe's story about Freyja and Od was a big hit. (I do not know if Joe really equates Od with Odin specifically...and he's snoring right now so I can't ask him. Some scholars do, some don't, depends on who you ask.)

And I didn't have to sit through the frightfully looooooooooooong meditation Marni always does! Joe and I got up and scooted out at the part where Tom leads a spiral dance - he does that during Marni's service every year, because she asks him to, because that's her understanding of the Pagan Solstice traditions - and we went over to the church's courtyard and got the altar set up and everything. That was nice. Better to get it done ahead of time, than to make people wait.

I have to admit, there was some really strange additions to Marni's service this year. There was a reading done, a poem, that talked about the Celtic Triple Goddess - the Maiden, Mother and Crone. Three people were assigned a part - one got the Maid's part, one got the Mother's part (and yes, she's pregnant), and one got the Crone's part. That's all well and good, and it was a nice touch, but the Maiden-Mother-Crone triplicity seems like it's more Mediterranean in origin, not Celtic. OK, yes, Brighid IS a Triple Goddess, yes, but She doesn't fit the MMC mold. She's the Goddess of the smithy, of poetry, and healing. She's really ageless; She isn't all Maiden, She isn't all Mother, and She isn't all Crone.

I wonder if I should, during the upcoming year, ask to lead an RE class on Goddesses. (RE being Religious Education.) I'll have to think about that. It's the most constructive way I can think of putting the message out there that not all cultures had the Maid-Mother-Crone thing going on with their deities. Not even the Norns in the Northern Way are MMC. In the Poetic Edda, in the Voluspa, they are described as "maidens" and some take that to mean they are Jotun/giant maidens. Here are the verses in the Voluspa wherein the Norns are believed to make their appearance (bear with me as I insert here a rather long excerpt):

At Ida's Field the Aesir met:
Temple and altar they timbered and raised,
Set up a forge to smithy treasures,
Tongs they fashioned and tools wrought;

Played chess in the court and cheerful were;
Gold they lacked not, the gleaming metal
Then came three, the Thurs maidens,
Rejoicing in their strength, from Giant-home.

The high Gods gathered in council.
In their hall of judgement: Who of the dwarves
Should mould man by master craft
From Brimir's blood and Blain' s limbs?

Motsognir was their mighty ruler,
Greatest of dwarves, and Durin after him:
The dwarves did as Durin directed,
Many man forms made from the earth.

Nyi and Nidi, Nordri, Sudri, Austri and Vestri, Althjof, Dvalin, Bivor,
Bavor Bombur, Nori, An and Anar, Ai, Mjodvitnir, Veignr and Gandalf,
Vindalf, Thorin, Thror and Thrain, Thekkur, Litur, Vitur, Nar and Nyradur, Fili, Kili, Fundin, Nali Hefti, Vili, Hanar, Sviur, Billing, Bruni, Bildur, and Buri, Frar, Hornbori Fraegur, Loni, Aurvangur, Jari, Eikinskjaldi;
All Durin's folk I have duly named

I must tell of the dwarves in Dvalin' s host;
Like lions they were in Lofar's time:
In Juravale's marsh they made their dwelling,
From their Stone hall set out on journeys,

There was Draupnir and Dolgthrasir, Har, Haugspori, Hlevangur, Gloi, Dori, Ori, Dufur, Andvari, Skirvir, Virvir Skafidur, Ai, Alf and Yngvi,
Eikinskjaldi, Fjalar and Frosti, Finn and Ginnar
Men will remember while men live
The long line of Lofar's forbears.

Then from the host three came,
Great, merciful, from the God's home:
Ash and Elm on earth they found,
Faint, feeble, with no fate assigned them

Breath they had not, nor blood nor senses,
Nor language possessed, nor life-hue:
Odhinn gave them breath, Haenir senses,
Blood and life hue Lothur gave.

I know an ash tree, named Yggdrasil:
Sparkling showers are shed on its leaves
That drip dew, into the dales below,
By Urd's well it waves evergreen,
Stands over that still pool,
Near it a bower whence now there come
The Fate Maidens, first Urd,
Skuld second, scorer of runes,
Then Verdandi, third of the Norns:
The laws that determine the lives of men
They fixed forever and their fate sealed.

To put it in a visual context, here are a few images of the Norns:









The first 2 are my favorite images of the Norns.

Well, it's something to consider. I may have to give such a class some serious thought. Better to do a class on it, or give a lecture or something like that, than to come out and directly contradict Marni's service - and here's where diplomacy comes in. If I go on the Grove's mailing list and everyone is saying how great Marni's service was and I say, "Yeah but the whole MMC thing really isn't a Celtic thing at all" I'll be looked at as a....insufferable know-it-all. It's then possible that everything I say would be dismissed with the attitude of "oh, well, all she does is complain about things, she's just doing her usual bitching again." Yes, I could just come out and say it, but why take the chance of being blown off like that? I'd hope they wouldn't do it, but I've been burned enough in my life of people not taking seriously anything I say, so why would it not happen there too?

It's just something that seems to happen to me a lot.

Ya know, I really dig these people in Mystic Grove and the UU church that I hang with. They're good people. But, well, as is wont to happen sometimes, people get starry-eyed about things and they wind up in fluffland. And of course, Marni is in a position where she has to conduct a religious ritual that people of ALL different religious backgrounds can appreciate. Her background is mostly Unitarian and Buddhist. She's not even *claiming* to do a Pagan Solstice ritual, so she's free to create whatever rite she wants to. She just wants to have a ceremony to mark the Solstice; no one said ALL Solstice rites HAD to be Pagan ones. BUT if one is going to introduce Pagan elements (and specifically Celtic ones) into such a rite, let it be accurate, at least.

At any rate, soon we get to turn our faces towards Imbolg (in the Celtic tradition) and the Feast of Thunar (Thor, in the Norse tradition). The days will start to get longer from here on out. Woot!

Holy Days

Many people hold at least one blót every month or so. The dates given are ones that are commonly used in modern Ásatrú, and while it always isn't possible to be exact on dates, we pick the Saturday or Sunday closest to it. Some of the blessings listed here were also held to be important by our ancestors. The most important are Yule, Ostara, Midsummer and Winter Nights. Some of the rites are based on localized celebrations, such as the Icelandic Þórablót. Others are modern creations, such as Skaðiblot. Many people and groups will follow their own calendars, celebrating what they feel is important to them.

Important Days of the Year

Yule
Traditional: End of December (running for 12 days)
Yule is the holiest of all our holy days. It is the time when our Gods and Goddesses are closest to us. In fact, the Norse called them "Yule-Beings" and one of Óðinn's names is Jólnir, or "Yule-One." It is also the time when our ancestors and those who have gone before us return to Miðgarð to feast with us, and so a plate is set out for them, heaped high with steaming food. The alfs, troll, kobolds, land spirits and many others also wander freely at this time and need to be warded off or invited in as guests. The wild hunt which began riding with winter's first snows reaches its peak at this time, and while it is dangerous to meet them, food and drink are left out for them for they bring fruitfulness and blessing. Traditionally, oaths are sworn at this time, usually on a boar. Some kindreds will use boar-cakes. Many people will also hang holy gifts on trees, gifts for the Gods and Ghosts who gather at this time of year.

Feast of Thunar
Modern: Full moon or new moon in January or around 19 to 25
There is a modern, national holiday in Iceland whose roots to the 19th century called Þórrablót. In Iceland, this feast has nothing to do traditionally with Þórr, but is instead a celebration of traditional Icelandic culture. Many modern Ásatrúar in North America take this opportunity to honour Þórr, for it is this time of year, when Winter really sinks his teeth in, that the Warder of Humanity is needed.

Skaðiblót
Modern: New moon in January or end of January to beginning of February
The North Stone Hearth holds a blót to Skaði at this time of year. On this day, we attempt to melt this wintry Goddesses frozen disposition, or at least soften it somewhat, and ask her to ease her cold grip on the land. Sometimes tied in with Disting.

Idis-Þing or Disting
Traditional: Beginning of February
Modern: The first weekend of February, sometimes February 2
Many modern Ásatrúar celebrate Disting, also known as Charming of the Plough, at this time of year. In Alberta in February the Earth is still covered in a thick blanket of snow and temperature's of below -30c are not unusual.

Ostara
Traditional: Sometime at mid to end of April
Modern: April 21 of the full moon, sometimes with Easter
This is the time of year when trees start budding, and a little green can be seen again. This is spring, and we celebrate her arrival with Ostara eggs, painted and decorated with the runes of fertility and home and with a morning feast. We also enact a drama in which Winter is beaten and driven out and ultimately burned in effigy.

Walburg's Night
Traditional: Late April, though was not called Walburg's
Modern April 30 through to May 1
Traditionally this is seen as the night when witches are most active. It is also seen as a night of love, and young men will go into the woods gathering tender branches and wild flowers with which to decorate the windows of their beloved. As Freya is seen as mistress of both witchcraft and love, this day is held as holy to her by many modern Ásatrúar. This is a day for honouring Freya, and is also seen as a kind of equivalent to an Ásatrú Valentine's Day.

Midsummer
Traditional: Mid-summer
Modern: June 21 (solstice)
At this time we discuss the past year and make plans for the year ahead. This day was chosen for this meeting because the Icelandic Althing (judgment-moot) was held during the summer. One a more religious note, on this day we especially honour Týr and Forseti, Gods of justice. We also ask for the Gods blessings on our works, as this is a time for starting bold, new projects. We offer as sacrifice a small model ship. Before it is cast into the flames, we all touch the ship each quietly speak a bidding or thanks to the Gods and Goddesses.

Freyfaxi
Traditional: Likely end of July though was not called Freyfaxi then
Modern: August 1
This celebration marks the time of the first harvest in traditional agriculture base societies. In modern times, we city folk take this opportunity to thank the Gods and Goddesses, especially those who are responsible for fruitfulness, for the fruits of our summer labours. We will hail Freyr and Freya, Nerthus and Njörðr, Þórr and Sif and Farmatýr ("Cargo-God", one of the name of Óðinn)

Winternights
Traditional: Mid October to end of October
Modern: Second weekend in October or sometimes the end of October
With the first snows starts that part of the year when the wall between the world of the living and the world of the dead grows thin. This will peak over the twelve days of Yule. At this time, we honour our ancestors, and remember those who have died, especially those who have died recently. We honour the ancestral Ídises and Alfs who have watched over our families, and the Gods and Goddesses who lead them. We honour Óðinn and the Wild Hunt he starts leading at this time of year, offering grain for his horse: "Óðinn, give your horse now fodder. This year thistle and thorn - the next year better grain!" And we sacrifice a bread horse (in case that's not 100% clear, that's a horse made out of bread), after placing our hands upon it and softly speaking a bidding or blessing for it to carry to the Gods and Goddesses for us.

Einherjar Day
Modern : November 11
The Einherjar are those who have fallen in battle and been taken by the Valkyries to either Óðinn's or Freya's halls, with each getting half of the slain. Einherjar Day is an entirely modern invention. However, many modern Ásatrúar felt very strongly that the war-dead needed to be honoured. Since our nation has a day for doing so, it seemed quite appropriate to honour them in an Ásatrú fashion, with a day of toasting and remembering. On this day, we will hail those who died holding the line at Ypres, those who died taking Vimy Ridge, those who died at Dieppe, and thousands, millions of others. We will hail those whose awe-inspiring courage earned them the Victoria Cross, and those whose awe-inspiring courage was never witnessed.

Other Special Days

These blessings are usually held to remember some great hero or heroine from our past. Typically, members will do their own thing on these days, from holding a private blót in their homes, to taking a moment to contemplate the one being honoured.

Remembrance for Raud the Strong - January 9
Raud was a Norwegian chieftain tortured to death by Olaf the Traitor for refusing to convert to Christianity. He was put to death by having the end of a metal horn put in his mouth, into which was put a poisonous snake which was driven down the horn and into Raud by heating the horn.

Remembrance for Eyvind Kinnrifi - February 9
Eyvind was another heathen tortured to death by Olaf the Traitor for refusing to convert. Eyvind was killed by having a brazier filled with burning coals placed on his belly.

Feast of Vali - February 14
Although there is no connection between Vali and St. Valentine, except for the superficial resemblance between their names, many modern Ásatrúar will honour the god, Vali on this day.

Ragnar Lodbrok's Day - March 28
Ragnar was a famous viking, and on this day we celebrate his sacking of Paris.

Remembrance for Haakon Sigurdsson - April 9
On this day, we remember Haakon the Great, one of the Jarls of Hlaðir, and a great defender of Heathenism during the brutal conversion.

Remembrance for Gudrod of Gudbrandsdal - May 9
Gudrod was a heathen whose tongue was cut out by Olaf the Fat (not to be confused with Olaf the Traitor).

Remembrance for Sigurd the Dragonslayer - June 9
Arguably the greatest hero in all Germanic/Scandinavian literature. We remember his might, his courage and his honour.

Remembrance for Unn the Deep -Minded - July 9
On this day, we remember the woman who was one of the great chieftains of the Icelandic settlement. She led her clan form Norway.

Death of Olaf the Fat - July 29
On this day, we celebrate the death of Olaf the Fat, a person who was canonized for his efforts to convert Norway through the tools of slaughter and torture.

Remembrance for King Radbod of Frisia - August 9
Radbod had one foot on the baptismal font and was about to receive baptism, when he asked if he would dwell with his heathen ancestors after death. He was told in no uncertain terms that he would not, and that his ancestors were surely damned. He changed his mind, saying that "he could not do without the fellowship of all those who ruled over the Frisians before him, and that he did not want to have to sit around in heaven with a little pack of beggars, and therefore he could not give the new faith any troth and he would rather stay with the one to which he, along with the whole of the Frisians, had held fast." He then staunchly defended the heathen ways of his people, opposing the Christian missionaries.

Remembrance for Hermann the Cheruscan - September 9
A great hero who kept the Romans out of Germania, keeping their culture and language safe from the destruction being experience in occupied Celtic Gaul.

Remembrance for Erík The Red - October 28; Remembrance for Leif Eriksson and Freydis Eriksdottir - Columbus Day
Leaders of the earliest European settlement in the North America.

Remembrance for Queen Sigrid of Sweden - November 9
Olaf the Traitor wished to marry her. When she told him that she had no problem with his worshiping his Christ, but had no intention of leaving the faith of her ancestors, he slapped her. She was the one behind the alliance which brought him down and saw him dead.

Weyland the Smith's (Völundr) Day - Thanksgiving Day (USA)
On this day we honour the great craftsman. Incidentally, no one really knows why this day was chosen. Its just become tradition.

Remembrance for Egill Skallagrimsson - December 9
On this day, we honour this great viking, warrior, poet and rune master. His exploits are described in the Saga of Egill Skallagrimsson

So THIS Is What They Want

I was on one of the Pagan forums, and it seems that the only thing people want in Paganism any more is eclecticism. No one appreciates reconstructionism at all.

One woman said, "It's too much work." Yet she's working on her first degree Correllian initiation. She's willing to put all the work into the one thing, which is utter cotton candy...yet she can't be bothered to put the work into really recreating the old religions of the deities she wants to worship.

She feels called by the Greek pantheon, but doesn't want to give up being Wiccan.

Wicca has nothing to do with Greek worship.

I say this is getting a little ridiculous. Wicca is Wicca. Let it BE Wicca.

Then again, my own friend Lexa is a Dianic Wiccan. But SHE has SENSE. She's been a recon before, so she knows what's what. Me, I hesitate to use the term Wicca in conjunction with Dianic, simply because I know Wicca is one thing. Dianic worship is another.

I used to be Dianic myself, and even now as a Heathen I have a strong feminist bent to my spiritual path, I have to admit. Yes it's true, there ARE feminist Heathens out there.

My question is, why be Wiccan? Why is it necessary to have that label? I've had moments, I must admit, where I wished Wicca would VANISH from the face of the earth. I wish it had never been born. I wish the old man had been a little more clear in things...but he was a Gemini, and Geminis are known for clouding issues on purpose. They are VERY good at that. They don't want people to discern what they're REALLY up to.

Makes me think twice about participating in a religion invented by a Gemini. For all I know, he was using it as an excuse to indulge in bondage and sexual promiscuity.

Sort of makes me glad that Joe is a Heathen, not a Wiccan. He's a Gemini, and he APPARENTLY wants to have a very real relationship with the Gods, not an excuse to fuck everything that moves.

He'd be the first to say that no, he was doing THAT long before he was a Heathen! He doesn't need Heathenry to give him an excuse to do it. If he wanted to do it, then he'd do it, Heathen or not.

But here's the thing - I've noticed that eclectics are eclectics only to a point. Try to suggest including Allah or Jehovah God or Jesus in the rituals, and they balk at that. Why? That's being eclectic, isn't it?

On the other hand.....I have moments where I think life would be easier as an eclectic Pagan....but I know that having more concrete things like the Havamal to guide one in life is a big plus, a real advantage....argh. What to think?

More on this later.

Jul! I'm So Happy!

But I'm getting so happy that Jul is almost here!

I found this turn-of-the-century Jul card on an advent calendar (not Mystic Grove's - a different one) and I couldn't resist snagging it.

I'd like to use it in a seasonal layout if I could.

I have to admit I'm wishing I lived in a cold, northerly climate so I can experience Jul for REAL, with real cold and real snow and whatnot.

I miss that.

I have to admit...Pooka has people thinking that the 12 Days of Jul are the ones that lead up to the Winter Solstice. That's not the case. The 12 Days of Jul are the ones that commence with the Winter Solstice.

For those who don't know, Jul is the extra-calendrical season of 12 days that begins with the Winter Solstice and lasts until New Year's Eve, and that entire 12 days is the Heathen New Year celebration. This is the celebration that was in place in such places like Scandinavia, Germany, Austria, etc long before Christianity came to Europe and Christmas took over that season.

Jul is an in-between time, belonging to no year, but being an independent space of time completely. It seems confusing to say that, and I'm sure most people will wonder "How can it be an independent space of time? What are you talking about?" But it's really not that difficult.

Most of the time in English the word is spelled "Yule." I like the Old Norse spelling "Jul" myself personally.

On the night of the Solstice, I'll be leading a ritual at the local UU church. Here is the rite I composed:

Ninefold Hallowing
Hamar I Nordri, Helga ve theta ok hald vordh!
Hamar I Austri, Helga ve theta ok hald vordh!
Hamar I Sudri, Helga ve theta ok hald vordh!
Hamar I Vestri, Helga ve theta ok hald vordh!
Hamar ifir mir, Helga ve theta ok hald vordh!
Hamar untr mir, Helga ve theta ok hald vordh!
(Three times) Hamar Helga ve theta ok hald vordh!
This stead is hallowed for our work here tonight. As Heimdallr wards the Bifrost Bridge into Asgard, so this stead is warded against all evil wights and unholy ways.

Call or Invocation - Call and response
Odin Allfather – Leader of Wild Hunt and Lord of Asgard (We welcome thee)
Nott Narfisdottir of the raven hair and dark embrace (We welcome thee)
Delling – Herald of dawn, Nott’s beloved (We welcome thee)
Dag – Proud, beautiful son of Nott and Delling (We welcome thee)
Sunna – Golden Lady of the Sun (We welcome thee)

Rede/Purpose of rite
Tonight is the turning-point of the year – when the old year gives way to the new as the Sun travels through the longest night and grows in strength and warmth from this night on. Sunna travels the cold, lonely darkness in Her chariot, ever pursued by a dark, fearsome wolf. To Her encouragement, we hold vigil round this bonfire which lights Her way.

The Wild Hunt is also abroad tonight, with Odin astride mighty Sleipnir, moving among howling wind and eerie silence, leading the souls of the deceased through the passage from life into Helaheim, into the keeping of Hela – and to their memory we will lift a horn and drink our toasts.

On this night we pay homage to the Aesir and Vanir, for their wise assistance and fairest companionship, walking with us throughout the past year and into the new.

Reading/Story
Skallabjorn's Freyja story – possibly ending with the lighting of Jul log

Loading/blessing of mead
Ansuz – for hearing the voices of the Gods
Laguz – for deepening of faith
Uruz – for might and health
Alu, Alu, Alu

Drinking/sumbel
This is the time for passing the horn and toasting ancestors, boasts, declarations as to what one will do in the New Year, etc

Blessing
By green herb and bright ale
Be thou blessed - Wassail

Giving
To Odin – Frigga – Tyr – Baldur – Thor – Freyr and Freyja
To all the Gods and Goddesses of our folk
To all kindly wights
For a prosperous and frith-ful year

Leaving/close
Thus the work is once again wrought. It renews our hearts to do worthy deeds, and to strive towards our goals with mighty moods, wise words, and trust in our own powers – ever holding true to our oaths to ourselves and our folk!

One thing I've noticed - there is a strong element of darkness to Jul that Wiccans (and please note, I'm not Wiccan) will recognize from the Celtic holiday of Samhain. There's a strong awareness of death in Jul, not just the turning of the old year to the new. That's why toasts are drunk to the ancestors, and that's why Odin rides with the Wild Hunt at this time. The jotun/giants are closing in, and Thor is going to be very busy fighting them off as the days progress.

Jul really IS very much a crossroads - but it's a crossing into light. Samhain, much as I love that holiday because it sings so strongly to my Celtic ancestry just as Jul does to my Dutch ancestry, is a crossing into darkness.

It's very strange, being an American Heathen of mixed descent. Not that there was any "pure" group centuries ago with "pure" religious traditons. I have my Irish Gael ancestors on my father's side, and my mother's side gives me my Dutch heritage.

And I want to honor those cultures as much as possible in my spiritual life. They blended to make me what I am today.

Telephone!

I just read another entry by a different writer here who wrote about Denver's problem with a holiday parade. From the sound of the entry that was posted, it came across like Denver had not only canceled the parade itself, but canceled Christmas!

But I found the article in question, and here is the actual text of the article:

DENVER -- It's one of Denver's most colorful holiday traditions -- the lighting of the Denver City and County Building and the parade of lights downtown. But now two decisions about those events are making church groups see red.

Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper recently announced that next year the phrase "Merry Christmas" will be removed from the city building and replaced with "Happy Holidays."

And now a church group who wants to march in the Parade of Lights and sing Christmas carols will not be allowed to participate in the parade.

Organizers say the parade is about the holidays, not Christmas, but leaders of the Faith Bible Chapel say that's ridiculous. "We can't pretend that Christ didn't exist and Christmas wasn't about his birthday, so we felt we could sing it and apparently that is not in social vogue anymore," said Pastor Gary Beasley, with the Faith Bible Chapel.

"Our policy, which we have applied consistently for years, is to not include religious or political messages in the parade -- in the interest of not excluding any group," said Jim Basey, the president of the Downtown Denver Partnership.

Susan Rogers, with the partnership said that no overtly religious symbols are allowed in the parade and that means participants can't carry "Merry Christmas" signs and can't sing traditional Christmas hymns. However Basey seemed to contradict her in a later statement when he said, "The parade includes performances of Christmas songs, and parade participants saying 'Merry Christmas,' 'Happy Hanukkah,' and other holiday greetings."

In the 30 years that it's been held, there has been an occasional Christmas element to the parade, such as marching bands playing Christmas songs, and several years ago a large balloon in the parade read "Merry Christmas." In 1987, even Mayor Federico Pena greeted the city with "Merry Christmas!" during the parade.

But last spring when the Faith Bible Chapel asked to be a part of the parade, offering to sponsor or build their own float and sing carols, organizers said no because it would be offensive.

"We try to be sensitive to the fact that we are a very diverse community and a very diverse world," said Rogers. She said this is a holiday parade, not specifically a Christmas parade, and it's occuring during a season when many other cultures are celebrating other holidays as well.

But Beasley doesn't see this reaction as being tolerant of other religions, but being intolerant of Christianity. He said his large evangelical organization is being excluded from a major downtown celebration.

"We're singing Christmas carols. It's Christmas time, people have been singing Christmas carols for hundreds of years in America," Beasley said, sounding exasperated.

The Arvada church group said since it cannot be in the parade, it will march one hour before this weekend's Parade of Lights, pass out hot chocolate and sing Christmas carols. Beasley said many other church groups plan to join the peaceful protest.

Basey said, "A core principle of downtown Denver is that downtown is for everyone, and the Parade and holiday season is a time when we all celebrate together as a community. We look forward to a successful parade this year, and we hope to see you there."

First of all, I think the idea of the church groups marching an hour ahead of the parade is actually a very effective way to settle the issue, at least for the time being. Those who don't celebrate Christmas because they aren't Christian don't have to go to that part of it. At least then, people would have a choice which part of the parade they want to see, and those who DO want to see a Christian Christmas parade can see that.

Any religious groups who have other celebrations at this time of year, which might include the Hindus with Diwali (which I think falls in December) can do their own thing too.

On the other hand, there is something to be said for the idea that eventually people WILL see how redundant it is to have two separate events, and in some way, shape or form the Christians will just end up being melded into the whole thing in the long run anyway. The only thing is, the people of Denver have to go through this process in order to really see the silliness of it.

There's a part of me that says that there should be Christians represented in the parade. As long as some attempt is made to include other non-Christian religions in said parade, there's no reason not to have Christians in the parade. The only snag with that I could see is that some Christians may not WANT to participate because perhaps other religions that they think are "false" may be part of that parade, and they may not wish to be seen in the same parade as, say, Hindus or whatever. But at least give the Christians the option to say yes or no to participating in the parade. They're perfectly free to say either yes, we'd love to - or no thank you, we'll just have our own parade instead.

I also want to point out that the parade itself was clearly NOT canceled. The writer of the entry that got on RC did not explain this very well, and those readers who only read that entry and not the whole article got the wrong idea. I could tell by reading the notes.

I don't see how one parade in one city in the US is an attack on the First Amendment - and as far as I can see, this isn't a First Amendment issue anyway. The First Amendment describes the limitations Congress has put upon itself with regard to such things as a state religion and freedom of speech, expression, the press, and the right to peaceably assemble and address grievances. But it applies to CONGRESS ONLY - read the words exactly as they appear on the page. "CONGRESS shall make no law..."

It doesn't apply to the states, or to even more local governments like counties or cities.

The states were left to draw up their own constitutions and make their own statements about religion and so forth.

The language used in the entry I read was very panicky - and the notes I read were just as panicky as well, esp. from those who did not bother to read the actual article. I think the entry created a field of panicky energy where people were just firing off without any rational thought at all. God forbid their words had been weapons and people were just randomly shooting off into a crowd. How many people would have been dead by the end of such an exchange?

This is why it's so important to get to the SOURCE of things, not just rely on hearsay and secondhand information.

One note that struck me very strongly talked about an alleged amendment in the U.S. Constitution that dealt with separation of church and state. I'm sorry, but as much as I myself would like to see it, there is no such amendment there. I've read the actual text of the U.S. Constitution several times, and that phrase (separation of church and state) isn't used in the document at all.

People REALLY need to sit down and read important documents like the Constitution before spewing off about it. People need to make VERY SURE they can really back up any statements they make about things like that. It's too important to get wrong. In the case of the Constitution, it's the most sacred civil document we have, more so than the Declaration of Independence. The U.S. Constitution is THE law 'round these parts.

And once people have actually read things like this, they need to make very sure they understand the meaning behind what they read - comprehension is a lost art these days, it seems to me.

I noticed a certain amount of contradiction in the entry too. The writer claimed to be agnostic, but then kept vigorously using inclusive language, saying things like "OUR beliefs." Using language like that indicates membership in that group of which one is speaking. Trust me - as a writer, as a person who appreciates the artistry of words, language is a very powerful and sublime instrument and must be used with care. At any rate, this writer needs to be more consistent when writing about these things, and be very careful about using certain phrases, or else his/her meaning will be taken completely wrong or out of context. Misunderstandings will ensue nine ways from Sunday.

I could go into a great amount of detail about what "agnostic" means and how it comes into English from the Greek, and how it's justthisclose to "atheist" but not quite the same thing -- but I'll save it.

Well, there it is. I wanted to get this off my chest. It's nothing to get excited about, it's not an attack on anyone's First Amendment rights REALLY, and Christmas hasn't been canceled by the city of Denver.

This is why, when I comment in my diary on articles like this, I include the actual text of the article so there is no mistake as to what I'm talking about. I set the text of the article apart from my text either with bold or color, to emphasize what is NOT my text and what IS my text.

Pleasure....

Just got up from a little frisky fun with Joe. This is good. I'm going to have to shower because my fingers are all sticky - I'm on my period and I just masturbated myself, tampon-free, while he stroked me and talked to me. I became very aroused when thinking about an erotic dream I had last night, and I'm not one to be squeamish about my period and sexuality. Hey, to me the moistness feels really erotic. And there's the whole hormonal thing to think about...

Mmmm, I'm almost ready to do it again! But I must shower and dress so we can do something today....