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While Senator Barack Obama struggles to keep the public in the dark about the nature of his pro-U.N. Global Poverty Act, a recent "Bay Area Interfaith Leaders' Luncheon" was held to lobby for Senate passage of the bill, whose cost has been estimated at $845 billion. An actual witch who spoke at a "Pagan Pride" festival in San Francisco was one of the listed participants. The witch, known as the "Elder Donald Frew" of the "Wiccan Community," was interviewed by the Reverend Don Lewis of "Witch School International" for a "reality" show called "Magick TV" and is shown talking about...

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- A Wiccan pentacle has joined a controversial nativity scene at Green Bay's City Hall. The manger scene was put up by City Council President Chad Fradette, who wanted to defy an anti-religious group that was protesting another nativity scene in a nearby town. However, the Wiccans said that was an abuse of power and requested that the Wiccan symbol go up next to the nativity. "I want to see all those other faiths that we don't get an opportunity to see in Green Bay, Wis., because we are sometimes relegated to that," said Wiccan Kelly Winters....

A common gripe of the Left in general and the DUmmies in particular is that conservatives are a bunch of ignorant, superstitious, rightwing fundamentalists. They like to portray themselves as rational humanists who are somehow above religious "superstition." However, if you scratch a DUmmie, you will often find that, below the surface, there exists a bunch of groupthink ignoramuses who swallow outlandish cult rantings without question. As evidence I present this DUmmie THREAD titled, "I'm thinking of leaving my coven/school." Right away, the fact that DUmmie MorningGlow uses the word "coven" seriously is a clear tell of her irrational...

MADISON, Wis. (April 24) - The Wiccan pentacle has been added to the list of emblems allowed in national cemeteries and on goverment-issued headstones of fallen soldiers, according to a settlement announced Monday. A settlement between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Wiccans adds the five-pointed star to the list of "emblems of belief" allowed on VA grave markers. "I am glad this has ended in success in time to get markers for Memorial Day," said Wiccan priestess Selena Fox. Eleven families nationwide are waiting for grave markers with the pentacle, said Selena Fox, a Wiccan high priestess with...

Religion News Solstice rite held early at Stonehenge Dec 22, 2006 LONDON, England (UPI) -- Around 60 people turned up to celebrate the Winter Solstice at Stonehenge Thursday - on the wrong day. After negotiating with site managers, the crowd performed traditional solstice activities and left peacefully. One reveller, who wished to remain anonymous, said: 'We formed a ring and held hands, and touched the stones. The man with the green cloak was there. But there were an awful lot of red faces,' she said. The Pagan Winter Solstice celebration is one of the oldest winter celebrations in the world....

With an estimated 400,000 members nationwide, and a high-profile fight with the federal government over veterans' grave markers, Wiccans are moving into a more prominent place in the religious landscape. Selena Fox is leading the way. A Wiccan priestess and founder of Circle Sanctuary, a 200-acre nature center in the Wisconsin woods about 30 miles west of Madison, Fox battles for acceptance of the so-called neo-pagan religion. Though they are often equated with witches, many Wiccans reject the label because of the baggage it brings. Fox, whose graying hair flows midway down her purple dress and matching cape, exudes more...

NEO-PAGAN Wiccans in the United States have gone to court to force the US military to accept their five-pointed star-in-a-circle symbol on tombstones in military cemeteries, a civil liberties group said today. The American Civil Liberties Union said the Wiccans want to have their symbol recognised for use in the official veterans' graveyards in the same way that Christian crosses, the Jewish Star of David and symbols for Muslims, Sikhs and adherents of other religions - 38 in all - are used.

“Your son and daughter might be the next Hansel and Gretel,” should have been the warning label on the Guide to Paganism supplied to British prison governors by the Pagan Federation. Michael Spurr, director of operations of the Prison Service, approved the new norms, which allow pagan British inmates possession of incenses and an amulet, the services of pagan “chaplains,” and the practice of rites and chants in their cells, London’s Times reported on October 17th of last year.  Pretence of Antiquity Witchcraft and paganism have been growing worldwide, especially the practice of Wicca, for which courses one can now...

I am a retired university administrator and faculty member, a lifelong Methodist (now United Methodist), a clergy wife, a mother and a grandmother. At this age I had imagined that I would be happily treasuring traditional Christian views, following the well-worn path to the church, and participating in all the usual “keep-’em-busy-and-involved” church activities. Here I am at 78 raising more questions about the Christian faith than ever before. I am offended by the continued use of sexist language and bored by the endless rehearsal of our ancient doctrines. I can no longer think like a first century Christian, the...

DUXBURY - She doesn’t always wear the robe and the cloak, but the Rev. Kendra Vaughan Hovey is never without her priest’s collar. As the elder high priestess of the First Church of Wicca in Duxbury, the white collar is more than a symbol of her beliefs. She says it provides an opportunity to educate others about those beliefs. Sitting in her home office, where she prepares sermons, answers e-mail and prays at the altar neatly set in the corner beneath a window, Hovey recalls a recent interaction at her daughter’s dance recital. ‘‘One of the other mothers said she’d...

The Catholic chaplain of St Andrew's University in Scotland has defended the institution's decision to officially recognise Wiccans. St Andrews University, whose graduates include Prince William, has decided to allocate an area for followers of the alternative religion to hold festivals and rituals after university bosses feared they could be prosecuted under human rights legislation. Now pagan or wiccans as they prefer to be called, will be allowed to use campus buildings and outdoor space for festivals, providing they do not utter incantations or spells that might harm others. Nor may not raise spirits or to call up dark forces,...

Tallahassee, FL – Liberty Counsel filed a brief with the Florida Supreme Court defending a state law that exempts Bibles, religious publications and ceremonial items from sales tax. The lawsuit was filed by The Wiccan Religious Cooperative of Florida, Inc. (“Wiccan”) against the Department of Revenue. Wiccan says it paid sales tax on the purchase of the Satanic Bible and the Witch’s Bible Compleat. Instead of seeking a refund, Wiccan filed suit, claiming Florida Statute 212.06(9) violates the Establishment Clause. Florida law exempts from sales tax “the use, sale, or distribution of religious publications, Bibles, hymn books, prayer books, vestments,...

Scared of Halloween The Objectivist Center & Atlas Society ^ | October 31, 2005 | Edward Hudgins Posted on 10/31/2005 10:00:31 AM PST by Ed Hudgins Scared of Halloween By Edward Hudgins Exective Director The Objectivist Center & Atlas Society ehudgins@objectivistcenter.org October 31, 2005 Halloween has its origins in superstition and sadly, it invokes old and new superstitions still. Halloween, from "All Hallows Eve," was the evening before the Catholic All Saints Day and was supposed to be haunted by demons jealous of the holy day to follow. It also had roots in prehistoric Celtic mythology. But in modern times...

Scared of Halloween By Edward Hudgins Exective Director The Objectivist Center & Atlas Society ehudgins@objectivistcenter.org October 31, 2005 Halloween has its origins in superstition and sadly, it invokes old and new superstitions still. Halloween, from "All Hallows Eve," was the evening before the Catholic All Saints Day and was supposed to be haunted by demons jealous of the holy day to follow. It also had roots in prehistoric Celtic mythology. But in modern times it's developed into a fun day where children dress in ghoulish or cute costumes and canvass the neighborhood for candy while adults at masquerade parties imbibe...

Toronto School Board Warns Against Offending Wiccans at Halloween Calls Halloween “religious day of significance for Wiccans” which “should be treated respectfully” TORONTO, October 28, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Toronto School Board warned its schools that Halloween as it is traditionally celebrated may offend Wiccans, even suggesting that to a Wiccan unuse to the event, it might be experienced as a “traumatic shock.”In a memo to teachers and principals, the board claimed, “Many recently arrived students in our schools share absolutely none of the background cultural knowledge that is necessary to view ‘trick or treating,’ the commercialization of death, the...

Wiccans encircle an altar of fruit and bread as day turns to night in Central Park. The lush strains of a nearby performance of Puccini's "Turandot" blend with the prayers of an ancient Celtic harvest festival. Wicca is a modern reconstruction of the pre-Christian nature-based religions of Europe. "There is an exquisite, ecstatic sense of the sacred," said Phyllis Curott, lawyer, author and the priestess of the Temple of Ara. "You literally feel your heart open. Being in the circle is like being in the womb of the great Goddess."

INDIANAPOLIS - A judge who ordered two Wicca believers to shield their son from their "non-mainstream" faith overstepped his authority, an appeals court said Wednesday in dismissing the order. The Indiana Court of Appeals said state law gave a custodial parent the authority to determine a child's upbringing, including religious training. A judge could find that certain limitations were needed to protect a child from physical or emotional harm. The parents' appeal, brought by the Indiana Civil Liberties Union, claimed among other issues that the decree was unconstitutionally vague because it did not define mainstream religion. But the appeals court...

WASHINGTON - A religious liberties lawsuit brought by a Satan worshipper, a Wiccan witch, a white supremacist, and an adherent of an ancient Viking religion is drawing the impassioned support of major national religious groups as it approaches a hearing before the Supreme Court. The case is potentially the most important religious liberties case on this year's docket, impacting how far a state can go to accommodate the religious practices of its citizens and whether Congress can require states to be more accommodating. The case was filed by a group of Ohio inmates - Jon Cutter, J. Lee Hampton, John...

Vol. 8, No. 14 December 2, 2004 PC Protection Racket by Sally Pipes, President and CEO At long last the presidential election of 2004 is history. So hectic was the final week before the vote that one rather strange story failed to elicit some much needed analysis. Some viewed it as comic relief, but it was more than that. In the town of Puyallup, Washington, school officials banned Halloween celebrations in class. In a dumbed-down nation, one can certainly sympathize with such a move on the part of educators. Such activities generate a lot of waste material and deprive students...

A Wiccan defends Christians I am a practicing Wiccan with a significant religious and specifically "Christian" history, and I share in Pastor George Morrison's shock and dismay! The premise of the Yule celebration, known by Christians as "Christmas," is a celebration that enjoys contributions from many cultural and religious sources. To Christians it is a time of acknowledgement of the birth of Jesus Christ and all that he stood for in his life – specifically, manifestation of a giving spirit coupled with personal sacrifice. All the pageantry and ritual associated with this specific holiday is an aggregate of historical multicultural...

Wiccans included in interfaith exchange marking Sept. 11 anniversary It's almost 9 a.m. at Trinity United Methodist Church on Sunday, and Tom Davis, a Wiccan, is looking for the sun. In a few moments, he will cast the circle, pointing to each direction and invoking the four elements: earth, air, fire and water. He starts by facing east. "By the earth that is her body," Davis declares as light pours through a stained-glass window behind him. "By the air that is her breath. By the fire of her bright spirit. By the waters of her living womb." For the congregation...

(CNSNews.com) - Frustrated by an unsuccessful campaign to achieve religious recognition from the Boy Scouts of America, a Seattle-based Wicca church has launched its own youth program, which is based on tolerance for different beliefs, including differences in sexual orientation. SpiralScouts founder Pete 'Pathfinder' Davis believes that many of the things the Boy Scouts are doing are "socially inappropriate." He said he created to the SpiralScouts to "fill the void left by prejudicial treatment of other established children's programs." Davis, who serves as the Archpriest of the Wiccan Aquarian Tabernacle Church, said his main argument with the BSA is that...