The Real History of the Summer Solstice

Spoiler: It’s not good news. The modern 8 High Days of the Pagan calendar (or wheel of the year) comes from early Wicca, which based much of its traditions from Celtic and occult sources. Over nearly a century, we’ve become better at understanding the practices and beliefs of our pagan fore-bearers, but we can’t simply

Paganism and LGBTQ+ Pride

Happy Pride, y’all! I want to get down to how we can adapt Paganism to be more inclusive of the LGBTQ+ community. Let’s add some Queer Theory to our religious practices. I want to look at lore, phrasing, and especially concepts within Paganism that we should look at with a critical eye. Queering Pagan Lore

How to Make Pagan Offerings: What to Say and What to Give in Ritual

We are finally on to the practical aspects of ritual! This is part three in a series of articles about Pagan offerings and ritual. Part 1 and Part 2 are focused on the reasoning behind why we do ritual. Now, we are looking at how we do ritual. Per previous parts of this series, there

Connect to the Land This Summer

Ah, summertime! Warmth, flowers, fairies, what else do you need? I suspect a lot of us Pagans like to get out in nature in the summer, but how do we bring our spirituality with us? I’m a sucker for learning, so one of my tips is to “learn more,” but keep in mind that learning

Do Your Research! Pagan History and Lore

Back in January, I said I would do a book series, and I made a post about the different kinds of books a Pagan should read. In the meantime, I’ve realized that there is an ableist assumption in focusing so much on books and reading. Really, there’s an ableist assumption in demanding people learn through

Celebrating the Wonnezeit Season and Frau Holle

Frau Holle If you’re a Heathen, you may have heard about Frau Holle. She is most famous (even today in Germany) for a fairytale about her collected by the Brothers Grimm. Similar to figures like Baba Yaga, many people argue that in pre-Christian times she was a goddess. Many other-worldly beings in folktales have been

How to Make Pagan Offerings: Speaking to the Gods

The thing about polytheism is that there are many (poly) gods. And beyond the gods, there are spirits and ancestors. There are a lot of beings, and it can be overwhelming! So how do you approach the gods and other spirits? Who do you go to in a specific situation? When is a problem better

Thoughts on My Grandma’s First Deathday

I’m often told that a deathday sounds “morbid.” But memento mori, y’all. In all seriousness, I came up with the term while adding ancestor’s birthdays to my calendar. I am trying to start a more active ancestor practice, and I thought honoring them on their birthdays would be a great way to start. Then I

Urglaawe (Germanic Paganism): Entschtanning and Groundhog Day

Entschtanning is one of several important holiday seasons in the Urglaawe calendar. The word “Entschtanning” means “emerging” and the season lasts for twelve days/nights. It is referred to as the single busiest of all holidays in Urglaawe, and it comes with layers of lore to understand. But much like other Neopagan traditions, it is centered

Imbolc and Dairy: Welcoming Brigid into Your Home

It is the beginnings of spring, when the wheel has only begun to turn. This is not the spring of Easter eggs and flowers, however. It is the spring of first birth. It is the spring of milk. Yes, milk.