I give thanks for my family of blood: for my mother and brothers and all the people who share my name and my genes. Because of you, I am. I give thanks for my family of choice: for the Druids and Pagans and UUs who share my beliefs and values and practices. Because of you, my journey is filled with learning and with love. I give thanks for the spirits of this place. You have welcomed me to this land... Read more

If you’re already a fan of Damh the Bard you don’t need to read this review. You know you want his new CD, you’re going to enjoy it, just go buy it. But if you want an opinion first, read on. Antlered Crown and Standing Stone is Damh the Bard’s first studio album of new songs in four years. Since The Cauldron Born in 2008, Damh has released an album of traditional folk songs and a live album, and his... Read more

Is there a Goddess or God, or goddesses and gods? Whether you consider yourself a nontheist, monotheist, duotheist, or polytheist, there is only one answer we can give with complete honesty and complete certainty. We don’t know. Our experiences may be so powerful we have no doubt there is, or our evidential requirements may be so high we have no doubt there isn’t, but in the end we simply do not know. I have previously encouraged my fellow theistic Pagans... Read more

It would be easy to dismiss the David Petraeus – Paula Broadwell affair as yet another case of a powerful man who couldn’t control his lower urges. It is tempting to laugh it off as yet another example of uptight Anglo-American morals being hopelessly outdated. Both of those approaches would be wrong. From Forbes comes this essay discussing “the danger of male mentors” and asking “is there an inherent danger in younger women pursuing mentor relationships with powerful older men?... Read more

Star Foster has a post on her new blog titled “Redemption: Even Pagans Need Deliverance.” Star has been very public with the difficulties in her life and here tells a very personal and very emotional story of loss. She asks: Sometimes even the most virtuous among us does grievous wrong, and how then do we atone for it? Do we find ourselves condemned to years of hardship, like Psyche or Herakles? And when we sell our souls, our integrity, our... Read more

Fellow OBOD Druid Dana Driscoll has a post on her blog about how she became a Druid. It’s led to some wonderful stories on another forum, including a condensed version of my own Druid story. Back in the Summer, Jason Mankey wrote about how Led Zeppelin was a “gateway to Paganism” for him. I intended to respond to that and never did. So as I’m trying to move on from politics, this seems like a good time to talk about... Read more

This is what political progress looks like: a few more wins, a few less losses, and a lot more of the status quo. Same sex marriage won in Maine and Maryland and appears to have won in Washington, while a measure to ban same sex marriage lost in Minnesota. That makes four victories after 32 straight losses in statewide elections. This is likely to be the Battle of Midway for marriage equality – many years of hard fighting remain, but... Read more

Tomorrow is Election Day in the United States and I strongly encourage everyone who can to vote. Many of us – myself included – are frustrated with the political process, and I am convinced the most important changes for ourselves and our wider world will be created by non-political means. But the democratic process is too important to abandon to the monied interests who dominate it, and voting does make a difference even if it doesn’t have the impact it... Read more

There’s a lot going on tonight. There’s handing out candy to trick or treaters and walking your own trick or treaters around the neighborhood. There’s remembering our beloved dead and honoring our ancestors. There’s celebrating the end of Summer and letting go of the things that no longer serve our True Will. It’s a time for divination, through Tarot, Ogham, runes or scrying. But after you do all that, I hope you’ll take a few moments to gaze through the... Read more