Racism and Runestones at Maine’s Spirit Pond

Last updated on: March 3, 2019 at 3:13 pm By Julia Penelope

The Spirit Pond Runestones are a set of three small stones that supposedly contain old Norse text. While they are little known today, they made quite the stir back in the 1970s when they were first discovered. Aside from the obvious historical implications provided they were authentic, these runestones are worth noting for the racist undertones present in their creation. The stones were ‘discovered’ in the small coastal town of Phippsburg in Sagadahoc County, Maine. It has a total area of... Read more

Highlights from Pantheacon 2019

Last updated on: February 25, 2019 at 9:57 pm By Julia Penelope

Whew! I can’t believe it’s already been a week since Pantheacon ended. As always, I had an amazing experience and was able to reconnect with so many people that I don’t get to see very often. I thought I’d share some of my highlights of the weekend with you: Thorn Mooney gave an excellent talk about Magical Journaling. I have really bad handwriting and have always struggled with this so it was really cool to hear her perspective. Basically, it’s... Read more

Lost in Transcription: On the Difficulty of Writing Oral Narratives

Last updated on: January 29, 2019 at 11:14 am By Julia Penelope

As a pagan and as an anthropology student, I spend a lot of time reading and analyzing historical texts. One major issue that arises quite often in my studies is the inevitable discrepancies that are found in the literary transcriptions of oral narratives. This topic is becoming increasingly relevant in a modern context because of the portrayal of indigenous peoples in ‘Western’ literature and as reconstructionist pagans seek to relearn the religious and spiritual practices of ancient peoples such as... Read more

Groundhog Day: History, Lore, and Weather Divination

Last updated on: January 31, 2019 at 10:29 am By Julia Penelope

Every year on February 2, news channels across the country broadcast from Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania (fun fact: I was born here) where Groundhog Phil emerges from his burrow to look for his shadow. While many people are only aware of this tradition because of the 1993 Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray, there’s actually a lot more to this holiday than meets the eye. Its origins are quite old in fact and lie within the weather divination practices of our ancient pagan... Read more

Public Service Announcement: Missionaries are COLONIZERS

Last updated on: January 24, 2019 at 8:47 pm By Julia Penelope

In the latest incident of ‘let’s try and convert remote indigenous tribes,’ a Baptist missionary from my home state of Maine is being investigated for entering the territory of the isolated Hi-Merimã tribe of the Brazilian Amazon. This comes just a few short months after another American missionary, John Chau, died while attempting to contact an island tribe in the Indian Ocean. While some may view these efforts to share ‘the love of Jesus’ as heroic and brave, they’re actually acts... Read more

Göbekli Tepe: The Worlds First Temple

Last updated on: January 19, 2019 at 8:17 pm By Julia Penelope

Göbekli Tepe is one of the most enigmatic archaeological sites discovered in recent years. Located about 12 km from Şanlıurfa in Turkey, this large archaeological complex is now believed to be home to the world’s oldest megaliths. While locals had been aware of the ruins on top of ‘Pot Belly Hill’- as it is known in the area, it was not excavated until 1995. Previous research, such as the work done by Peter Benedict, had supposed the site to be... Read more

Featured Business: Land Sea Sky Travel

Last updated on: December 21, 2018 at 10:44 am By Julia Penelope

As a traveller and pagan, I get so excited to meet other folks who share the same passions as me….namely old ruins and pilgrimage sites! So when I first heard about Land Sea Sky Travel, a small pagan owned business that specializes in sacred tours, I knew I had to connect with them. While I haven’t yet met Vyviane, we have become friends over the past year chatting about our travels. I reached out to her with some questions about... Read more

The Pagan Origins of the Yule Goat

Last updated on: December 13, 2018 at 12:35 pm By Julia Penelope

In Sweden, the Julbok, is a goat that delivers presents alongside the Jultomte on Christmas night. As with most folklore, the origins of this tradition lie within pre-Christian Scandinavian spiritual practices. Read more

Artist Feature: The Pickety Witch

Last updated on: December 9, 2018 at 5:38 pm By Julia Penelope

This week our featured independent artist and small business owner is Rachel from The Pickety Witch. She is an artist and designer extraordinaire who makes beautiful enamel pins. I met Rachel through a crazy happenstance about a year ago. We were actually classmates online at a college I attended and I recognized her artwork on Instagram a few months later. I reached out to say hi and we’ve stayed in touch! Read on for thoughts about art, design, and pin... Read more

Artist Feature: Wings of Sin

Last updated on: November 29, 2018 at 4:32 pm By Julia Penelope

I am counting down the weeks till Yule by featuring some of my favorite pagan women in small business. This time around I’m featuring another designer, Melaney-the one-woman show behind Wings of Sin. I first heard of Wings of Sin when I saw my friend Joie Grandbois wearing one of their pieces earlier in the year. I was blown away by how beautiful it was. I started following their Instagram a few days later and the rest is history….crows, runes,... Read more